Level Four Advisory Services LLC Trims Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. $WSM

Level Four Advisory Services LLC reduced its stake in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 10.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 31,224 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 3,749 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Williams-Sonoma were worth $6,103,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 111.8% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 144 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 130.8% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 180 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 66.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 220 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 57.2% in the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 228 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,715,497.76. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 35,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 806,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $167,267,708.43. This represents a 4.16% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on WSM. Evercore set a $215.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Zelman & Associates raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $205.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $206.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $202.11.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $199.16 on Wednesday. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $130.07 and a fifty-two week high of $222.00. The company has a market cap of $23.78 billion, a PE ratio of 21.91, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 1.64. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $204.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $195.85.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 16th were given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 16th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is 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.