Insight Inv LLC Purchases 9,803 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Insight Inv LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 81.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,866 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 9,803 shares during the period. Williams-Sonoma accounts for about 2.8% of Insight Inv LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Insight Inv LLC's holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $3,387,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings 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 shares of 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 purchasing an additional 3,038 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 8,237 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $326,931,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145,410 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,959 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $4,641,000 after buying an additional 12,061 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on WSM. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $148.00 to $156.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $154.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of Williams-Sonoma 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 of the company's stock, valued at $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at $129,309,848.44. The trade was a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 83,160 shares of company stock worth $11,590,952. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE:WSM traded up $1.34 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $190.16. 2,151,436 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,970,445. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.63 and a 1 year high of $192.83. The company has a market cap of $23.41 billion, a PE ratio of 22.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.81. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $149.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $146.35.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

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.