Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. Raises Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,700 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 900 shares during the quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $8,833,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Smithfield Trust Co boosted 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 purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. 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 stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This trade represents a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total transaction of $560,552.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This represents a 6.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 49,568 shares of company stock valued at $10,183,355 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on WSM shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Gordon Haskett raised Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. 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 research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $173.28.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $194.23 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a one year low of $115.79 and a one year high of $219.98. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $201.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $168.00. The company has a market cap of $23.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.97, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

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

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.