Wedbush Downgrades Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) to Neutral

Wedbush cut shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) from an outperform rating to a neutral rating in a research report report published on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. Wedbush currently has $135.00 price target on the specialty retailer’s stock, down from their previous price target of $150.00. Wedbush also issued estimates for Williams-Sonoma’s Q3 2025 earnings at $1.76 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $2.71 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.62 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.74 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.81 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $2.72 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $7.88 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $8.30 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $148.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, October 11th. Barclays reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $232.00 to $116.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $158.00 to $145.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $139.83.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $132.20 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $141.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $145.21. Williams-Sonoma has a one year low of $71.92 and a one year high of $174.26. The firm has a market cap of $16.70 billion, a PE ratio of 15.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.76.

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 firm had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.56 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total transaction of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,040,099. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of Williams-Sonoma 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 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 trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WSM. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 15,720 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,992,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at about $40,060,000. Norden Group LLC increased its position in Williams-Sonoma by 42.9% in the 1st quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 4,033 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,281,000 after buying an additional 1,210 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,177,000. Finally, Wambolt & Associates LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at about $493,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by 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.