Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Shares Sold by M&T Bank Corp

M&T Bank Corp decreased its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,268 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 309 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $5,050,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,536 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,167,000 after acquiring an additional 4,901 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 97.1% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $955,000 after acquiring an additional 3,038 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 94.8% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 19,535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,026,000 after acquiring an additional 9,509 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 27.2% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,512 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $5,966,000 after acquiring an additional 8,237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,959 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,641,000 after acquiring an additional 12,061 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE:WSM opened at $188.83 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $201.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $169.59. The firm has a market cap of $23.24 billion, a PE ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.79. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1-year low of $117.13 and a 1-year high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on WSM shares. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Loop Capital boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Wedbush reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $190.00 price objective (up previously from $175.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, February 28th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $173.28.

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.