JPMorgan Chase & Co. Purchases 337,564 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 118.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 622,279 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 337,564 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.51% of Williams-Sonoma worth $96,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 72.7% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,201 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,360,384,000 after purchasing an additional 3,695,837 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $825,588,000 after buying an additional 2,777,339 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $418,223,000 after buying an additional 1,393,436 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $326,931,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145,410 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $160,537,000 after acquiring an additional 792,068 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $187.55 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.18, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.81. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $165.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $151.77. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12 month low of $95.76 and a 12 month high of $199.41.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 26.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Citigroup lowered their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Loop Capital upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $158.78.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 990,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $129,309,848.44. This trade represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 business’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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,228,767.32. This represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.