Whalen Wealth Management Inc. Takes Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Whalen Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 1,500 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $278,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC raised 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. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, HM Payson & Co. boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $163.16.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $212.09 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.79. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $182.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $156.48. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $95.76 and a 52-week high of $212.92.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.97%.

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.