Whipplewood Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 2,007 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $372,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Impact Investors Inc bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth about $1,652,000. National Pension Service raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. National Pension Service now owns 316,535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $58,616,000 after acquiring an additional 3,200 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth about $454,000. LGL Partners LLC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 391.9% during the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 21,380 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,959,000 after purchasing an additional 17,034 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Wedbush boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $172.34.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

WSM opened at $198.35 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $115.41 and a 1-year high of $219.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $200.99 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.45. The company has a market capitalization of $24.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 26.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other 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 value of $560,552.40. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.