Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lowered its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 142,885 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 16,435 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $26,459,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 72.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,201 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,360,384,000 after buying an additional 3,695,837 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $825,588,000 after acquiring an additional 2,777,339 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $418,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,393,436 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $326,931,000 after purchasing an additional 1,145,410 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $160,537,000 after purchasing an additional 792,068 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $174.65 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $201.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $170.63. The company has a market cap of $21.50 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $118.75 and a 12 month high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 26.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $173.28.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This trade represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.