Analysts Set Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Target Price at $140.83

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the seventeen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $140.83.

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $148.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $147.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI reduced their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 5.7 %

Shares of WSM stock opened at $142.38 on Tuesday. Williams-Sonoma has a twelve month low of $71.56 and a twelve month high of $174.26. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $142.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $146.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 1.74.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.57% and a net margin of 14.29%. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.56 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 7.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.01%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total value 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 trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,030,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $149,766,978.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,040,099. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WSM. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 28.6% during the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 964,910 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $272,462,000 after purchasing an additional 214,669 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 5.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 823,692 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $232,613,000 after acquiring an additional 43,607 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 37.5% during the first quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 704,919 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $223,833,000 after purchasing an additional 192,432 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 536.3% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 383,700 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $108,345,000 after purchasing an additional 323,400 shares during the period. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 73.4% in the 2nd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 380,383 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $107,409,000 after purchasing an additional 161,000 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Company 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.