17,614 Shares in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM Acquired by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 17,614 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,443,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 37.9% in the third quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 16,398 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,205,000 after buying an additional 4,510 shares in the last quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the 3rd quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 14,593 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $2,852,000 after acquiring an additional 4,961 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.2% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 997,414 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $194,947,000 after acquiring an additional 231,489 shares in the last quarter. Berry Wealth Group LP acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter worth $230,000. Finally, Vest Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 39.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 282,503 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $55,215,000 after acquiring an additional 80,044 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.16, for a total value of $157,357.72. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 13,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,715,497.76. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 35,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.39, for a total transaction of $7,258,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 806,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $167,267,708.43. This represents a 4.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup upped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $188.00 to $208.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Williams-Sonoma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group set a $175.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $245.00 target price (up from $210.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Zelman & Associates raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $205.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $203.22.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $188.76 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $204.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $195.50. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 52 week low of $130.07 and a 52 week high of $222.00. The stock has a market cap of $22.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.77, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.64.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 16th were given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 16th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 29.04%.

About Williams-Sonoma

Williams?Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on the home and culinary markets, best known for premium cookware, kitchen tools and home furnishings. The company traces its roots to a single cookware store founded by Chuck Williams in 1956 in Sonoma, California, and has evolved into a multi?brand home furnishings and housewares business. Its merchandise mix spans cookware and kitchen electrics, tabletop and food prep items, furniture, bedding, lighting and decorative accessories designed for both everyday use and higher?end interiors.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that target distinct segments of the home market.