Private Advisor Group LLC Acquires 3,592 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 94.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,389 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,592 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $1,145,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 101.0% in the third quarter. Alexander Labrunerie & CO. Inc. now owns 5,091 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $789,000 after acquiring an additional 2,558 shares during the period. Christensen King & Associates Investment Services Inc. bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the 3rd quarter worth $211,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 92.5% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,802 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $744,000 after purchasing an additional 2,308 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 143.0% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 30,489 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,723,000 after acquiring an additional 17,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Telos Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 95.1% during the 3rd quarter. Telos Capital Management Inc. now owns 44,860 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,950,000 after buying an additional 21,870 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total transaction of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares in the company, valued at $2,040,099. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total value of $1,494,726.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,040,099. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total transaction of $5,810,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,030,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,766,978.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on WSM shares. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $158.00 to $145.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $148.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $232.00 to $116.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Wedbush cut Williams-Sonoma from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $150.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $139.83.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $132.28 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $71.92 and a 12-month high of $174.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.74. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $141.64 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.18.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 51.57%. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.56 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 7.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.72%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is 27.39%.

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.