Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 18.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 18,773 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 4,282 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $3,476,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Kozak & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $185.73 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $201.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.38. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $117.13 and a 12-month high of $219.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WSM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $173.28.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This trade represents a 4.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % 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.

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.