abrdn plc Lowers Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

abrdn plc trimmed its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 5.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 331,007 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 18,997 shares during the quarter. abrdn plc owned about 0.27% of Williams-Sonoma worth $61,523,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Smithfield Trust Co grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, HM Payson & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total value of $560,552.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at $129,309,848.44. This trade represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 88,160 shares of company stock valued at $15,129,352. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 1.8 %

Williams-Sonoma stock traded down $3.74 during trading on Friday, reaching $207.26. The company had a trading volume of 1,108,988 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,216,403. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $103.50 and a 52 week high of $219.98. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $196.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $161.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Telsey Advisory Group upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $172.34.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams-Sonoma, Inc operates as an omni-channel specialty retailer of various products for home. It offers cooking, dining, and entertaining products, such as cookware, tools, electrics, cutlery, tabletop and bar, outdoor, furniture, and a library of cookbooks under the Williams Sonoma Home brand, as well as home furnishings and decorative accessories under the Williams Sonoma lifestyle brand; and furniture, bedding, lighting, rugs, table essentials, and decorative accessories under the Pottery Barn brand.