MWA Asset Management Lowers Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

MWA Asset Management cut its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,117 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 108 shares during the quarter. MWA Asset Management’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $762,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WSM. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% during the 3rd 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 grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 97.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $955,000 after acquiring an additional 3,038 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 94.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 19,535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,026,000 after purchasing an additional 9,509 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 8,237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,959 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,641,000 after purchasing an additional 12,061 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM stock opened at $207.26 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $103.50 and a fifty-two week high of $219.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 1.79. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $195.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $161.51.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

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 given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.97%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $560,552.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 88,160 shares of company stock valued at $15,129,352 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on WSM shares. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wedbush boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $172.34.

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.