Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the nineteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $201.8333.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WSM. UBS Group set a $175.00 target price on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $206.00 price target on Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $220.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 target price (up previously from $210.00) on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $220.81 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.29, a P/E/G ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 1.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $195.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $193.98. Williams-Sonoma has a 52-week low of $130.07 and a 52-week high of $221.81.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.86 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 53.10%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.96 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.16, for a total transaction of $157,357.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,715,497.76. The trade was a 5.48% 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 35,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.39, for a total transaction of $7,258,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 806,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $167,267,708.43. This trade represents a 4.16% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 65,767 shares of company stock worth $12,802,440. 1.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WSM. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,139,477 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,199,961,000 after buying an additional 147,780 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,269,461 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $443,566,000 after acquiring an additional 532,995 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 30.6% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,741,639 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $284,532,000 after acquiring an additional 407,929 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at approximately $254,778,000. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter valued at approximately $212,107,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Williams-Sonoma

Williams?Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on the home and culinary markets, best known for premium cookware, kitchen tools and home furnishings. The company traces its roots to a single cookware store founded by Chuck Williams in 1956 in Sonoma, California, and has evolved into a multi?brand home furnishings and housewares business. Its merchandise mix spans cookware and kitchen electrics, tabletop and food prep items, furniture, bedding, lighting and decorative accessories designed for both everyday use and higher?end interiors.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that target distinct segments of the home market.