Rhumbline Advisers Buys 5,771 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 463,799 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 5,771 shares during the quarter. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.38% of Williams-Sonoma worth $85,886,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Smithfield Trust Co raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth $28,000. HM Payson & Co. increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company's stock, valued at $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total value of $560,552.40. Following the completion of 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on WSM shares. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Williams-Sonoma to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $172.34.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

WSM traded down $4.10 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $213.61. The company had a trading volume of 2,313,264 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,274,446. The business's fifty day moving average price is $199.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $164.45. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $108.74 and a 12 month high of $219.98. The company has a market cap of $26.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.26, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.98%.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.