Royal Bank of Canada Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Stock

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its target price hoisted by Royal Bank of Canada from $162.00 to $189.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $148.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.41.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE:WSM opened at $171.98 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.76. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $143.63 and a 200 day moving average of $144.82. Williams-Sonoma has a 52-week low of $90.31 and a 52-week high of $181.42.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.56 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.97%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,040,099. This represents a 42.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total transaction of $5,219,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at $129,309,848.44. This trade represents a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 91,100 shares of company stock valued at $12,525,126 in the last quarter. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quent Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 19.7% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 358 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 28.8% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 7,281 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,312,000 after buying an additional 1,629 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter worth $286,000. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 374.8% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 489 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $155,000 after buying an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter worth $239,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.