Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Has $4.51 Million Stock Holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 93.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 29,100 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,050 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $4,508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Smithfield Trust Co grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third 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. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the 3rd 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 bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the second quarter valued at $29,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were 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 owns 990,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $129,309,848.44. The trade was a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE:WSM opened at $172.02 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $21.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.81. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $92.55 and a fifty-two week high of $181.42. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $146.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $145.29.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 26.97%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 8th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, 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 report on Tuesday, November 19th. 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, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.41.

Williams-Sonoma 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.