Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Sells 145 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. cut its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,955 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 145 shares during the quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $5,362,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in WSM. Smithfield Trust Co boosted its stake 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 valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in 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 last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, HM Payson & Co. grew its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM stock opened at $212.09 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $182.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $156.48. The company has a market cap of $26.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.79. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $95.76 and a fifty-two week high of $212.92.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $8,228,767.32. This represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total transaction of $5,219,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WSM has been the topic of several recent research reports. Loop Capital lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average 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.