Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Price Target Raised to $180.00

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its price objective hoisted by Evercore ISI from $140.00 to $180.00 in a report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an in-line rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on WSM. 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. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $145.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Wedbush cut Williams-Sonoma from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $135.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $148.00 to $156.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $154.41.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM stock opened at $171.98 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.76. The company has a fifty day moving average of $143.63 and a 200-day moving average of $144.82. Williams-Sonoma has a one year low of $90.31 and a one year high of $181.42.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.56 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

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 (DPR) is currently 26.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 42.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,309,848.44. This trade represents a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 91,100 shares of company stock valued at $12,525,126. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Smithfield Trust Co grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the second quarter worth $26,000. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the third quarter. Cassady Schiller Wealth Management LLC now owns 166 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.