Nordea Investment Management AB Increases Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) by 48.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 527,740 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 172,409 shares during the quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB owned 0.43% of Williams-Sonoma worth $97,875,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,536 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,167,000 after buying an additional 4,901 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 97.1% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $955,000 after buying an additional 3,038 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 94.8% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 19,535 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,026,000 after buying an additional 9,509 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 27.2% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,512 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $5,966,000 after buying an additional 8,237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% in the 3rd 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 last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on WSM shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Citigroup decreased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Wedbush raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $160.03.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE WSM traded down $4.82 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $195.50. The company had a trading volume of 1,716,207 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,439,827. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $95.76 and a 52 week high of $200.56. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $167.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $152.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.12, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is currently 26.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was 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 approximately $8,228,767.32. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.