Smith Group Asset Management LLC Lowers Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Smith Group Asset Management LLC decreased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 66.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,780 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 3,530 shares during the period. Smith Group Asset Management LLC's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $330,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,536 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,167,000 after buying an additional 4,901 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake 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 buying an additional 3,038 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised 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 worth $3,026,000 after buying an additional 9,509 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 27.2% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,512 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $5,966,000 after buying an additional 8,237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,959 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,641,000 after buying an additional 12,061 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Loop Capital upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $172.34.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of WSM stock traded up $2.11 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $218.81. 301,259 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,303,695. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $190.40 and a 200 day moving average of $158.74. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $95.76 and a 52-week high of $219.88. The company has a market cap of $26.94 billion, a PE ratio of 25.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.04%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 88,160 shares of company stock worth $15,129,352 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

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.