Brokerages Set Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) PT at $141.17

Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have issued a hold recommendation and five have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $141.17.

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wedbush cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $137.50 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total value of $1,494,726.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares in the company, valued at $2,040,099. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total transaction of $5,810,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,030,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,766,978.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total transaction of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,040,099. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 91,100 shares of company stock worth $13,563,526. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Gleason Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Gleason Group Inc. now owns 8,969 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,848,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 521 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 4.4% in the first quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 1,225 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $389,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.6% in the first quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 617 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $196,000 after buying an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 19.7% during the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 358 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $114,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of WSM stock opened at $148.81 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $19.14 billion, a PE ratio of 18.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.74. The business’s fifty day moving average is $141.97 and its 200-day moving average is $145.60. Williams-Sonoma has a 1 year low of $69.95 and a 1 year high of $174.26.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 51.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.56 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 7.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.01%.

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.