HighTower Advisors LLC Sells 11,269 Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

HighTower Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 9.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 104,243 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 11,269 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $19,304,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WSM. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 72.7% in 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 in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake 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 worth $825,588,000 after buying an additional 2,777,339 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake 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. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $326,931,000 after buying an additional 1,145,410 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $160,537,000 after buying an additional 792,068 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of WSM stock opened at $167.22 on Friday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $125.33 and a 12-month high of $219.98. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $199.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at $196,263,808.16. This trade represents a 4.55 % 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Gordon Haskett upgraded Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target 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 raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Loop Capital lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $173.78.

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.