Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Receives $211.47 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $212.6471.

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $192.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $185.00 to $218.00 in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Evercore set a $200.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

NYSE:WSM opened at $222.57 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma has a 1 year low of $161.76 and a 1 year high of $244.65. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $204.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $199.22. The company has a market cap of $26.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.94, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.49.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.85 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma will post 9.39 EPS for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is 22.17%.

Insider Activity

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,419 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $188.45, for a total value of $267,410.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,433,306.10. The trade was a 3.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total transaction of $436,374.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,351 shares in the company, valued at $4,494,833.99. This represents a 8.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 55,320 shares of company stock valued at $10,516,069. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% in the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Ballast Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 229.4% during the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 168 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

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.