III Capital Management Takes Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

III Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 8,600 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,332,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% during 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 during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 97.1% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $955,000 after purchasing an additional 3,038 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 27.2% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,512 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,966,000 after purchasing an additional 8,237 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% during the 3rd 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, Pathstone Holdings LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 92.5% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 44,130 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,837,000 after purchasing an additional 21,200 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE WSM traded up $1.14 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $178.52. 113,325 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,963,283. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.63 and a 1 year high of $181.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $146.66 and a 200 day moving average of $145.43. The stock has a market cap of $21.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.81.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total transaction of $5,219,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on WSM. TD Cowen upped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Wedbush upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital upped their price target 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. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.41.

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.