Pacer Advisors Inc. Cuts Stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Pacer Advisors Inc. cut its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 98.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 37,362 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 2,072,958 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $6,919,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westmount Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 6,242 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,156,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings 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 lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 2.6% during the third quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,226 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $500,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, HM Payson & Co. increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.9 %

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $216.70 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52-week low of $95.76 and a 52-week high of $217.64. The company has a market cap of $26.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.63, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.79. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $190.40 and its 200 day moving average is $158.74.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.05%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, 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 directly owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total transaction 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 approximately $8,228,767.32. The trade was a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 88,160 shares of company stock valued at $15,129,352 over the last ninety days. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Wedbush upped their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $163.16.

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.