EP Wealth Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 79.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,556 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 691 shares during the quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $241,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Smithfield Trust Co grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on WSM. 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. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Wedbush boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $148.00 to $156.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.41.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

WSM opened at $195.63 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $153.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $147.96. The stock has a market cap of $24.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.81. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $95.76 and a 1-year high of $198.70.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 990,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total value 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 83,160 shares of company stock worth $11,590,952 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

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.