Simon Quick Advisors LLC Makes New $228,000 Investment in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Simon Quick Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 1,233 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $228,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% during the 3rd 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 grew its position 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 purchasing an additional 3,038 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 94.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 19,535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,026,000 after purchasing an additional 9,509 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position 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 last quarter. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,959 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,641,000 after purchasing an additional 12,061 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSM has been the subject of several recent research reports. Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. 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 report on Tuesday. Finally, Wedbush raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $163.16.

Insider Activity

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $129,309,848.44. This trade represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total value of $560,552.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 88,160 shares of company stock valued at $15,129,352. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM opened at $213.91 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $95.76 and a 1 year high of $214.42. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $185.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $157.25. The company has a market cap of $26.33 billion, a PE ratio of 25.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 26.98%.

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.