KBC Group NV Has $104.27 Million Stock Position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM)

KBC Group NV boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 563,058 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,754 shares during the period. KBC Group NV owned 0.46% of Williams-Sonoma worth $104,267,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Smithfield Trust Co boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Clean Yield Group acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, HM Payson & Co. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 200 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $213.91 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $187.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $157.86. Williams-Sonoma, Inc. has a 12-month low of $95.76 and a 12-month high of $214.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 1.79.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is 26.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total transaction of $560,552.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $8,228,767.32. This represents a 6.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 88,160 shares of company stock valued at $15,129,352 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on WSM shares. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Barclays boosted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Three 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, Williams-Sonoma presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $163.16.

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.