Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Trims Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 18.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,773 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 4,282 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $3,476,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of WSM. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,536 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 4,901 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 97.1% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $955,000 after acquiring an additional 3,038 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 94.8% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 19,535 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,026,000 after acquiring an additional 9,509 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 27.2% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,512 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $5,966,000 after acquiring an additional 8,237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,959 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,641,000 after purchasing an additional 12,061 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This trade represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price 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. Finally, 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 report on Thursday, November 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $173.78.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM traded down $8.91 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $165.99. The company had a trading volume of 523,484 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,844,703. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $125.33 and a 12-month high of $219.98. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $200.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $170.66. The stock has a market cap of $20.43 billion, a PE ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82.

Williams-Sonoma 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.