Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC Raises Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 52.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,367 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 2,547 shares during the quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,364,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,322,000. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth about $258,000. Empirical Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 19.0% during the 4th quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 2,764 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $512,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Retireful LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth about $1,564,000. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,473 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $4,162,000 after purchasing an additional 1,223 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on WSM shares. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Wedbush boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $160.03.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the company'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 transaction of $560,552.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM stock traded up $3.60 during trading on Friday, reaching $202.73. 1,452,286 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,779,851. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $95.76 and a 52-week high of $204.68. The company has a market cap of $24.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.98, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.79. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $179.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $155.55.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid 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 1.12%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is 26.97%.

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.