Kensington Investment Counsel LLC Acquires 16,791 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

Kensington Investment Counsel LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 49.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 50,446 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 16,791 shares during the period. Williams-Sonoma comprises 3.3% of Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $7,815,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WSM. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in 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. Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,226 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $500,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. TFG Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. TFG Advisers LLC now owns 2,746 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $776,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total transaction of $560,552.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total transaction of $5,810,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,030,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $149,766,978.12. This represents a 3.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 83,160 shares of company stock valued at $11,590,952 over the last quarter. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $188.82 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $23.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.81. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $149.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $146.31. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 1 year low of $94.63 and a 1 year high of $190.08.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on WSM shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $148.00 to $156.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.