Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Buys 1,130 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 255.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,573 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,130 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $293,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 72.7% during 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 last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $825,588,000 after acquiring an additional 2,777,339 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $418,223,000 after acquiring an additional 1,393,436 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $326,931,000 after purchasing an additional 1,145,410 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $160,537,000 after purchasing an additional 792,068 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $187.50 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $201.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $169.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.18, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.79. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $117.13 and a one year high of $219.98.

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 paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.22%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,014,116.16. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $173.28.

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.