Chase Investment Counsel Corp Boosts Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Chase Investment Counsel Corp boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 16.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 14,000 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period. Chase Investment Counsel Corp’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $2,592,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WSM. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. HM Payson & Co. raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Sittner & Nelson LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Sittner & Nelson LLC now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on WSM. Loop Capital lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $173.28.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $194.23 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $23.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $201.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $168.00. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $115.79 and a 12 month high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.98%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $9,349,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 49,568 shares of company stock worth $10,183,355. 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.