Handelsbanken Fonder AB Sells 7,600 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 9.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 74,420 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 7,600 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $13,781,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,474 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $643,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Westmount Partners LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 6,242 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,156,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Smithfield Trust Co grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,226 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $500,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. Finally, Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on WSM. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $172.34.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. 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 company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 6.8 %

Shares of WSM stock opened at $195.03 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $200.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $165.64. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $110.93 and a 52 week high of $219.98. The stock has a market cap of $24.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.07, a PEG ratio of 2.95 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.97%.

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.