Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Receives $172.34 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the nineteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, thirteen have given a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $172.34.

A number of brokerages have commented on WSM. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM opened at $195.03 on Monday. Williams-Sonoma has a one year low of $110.93 and a one year high of $219.98. The company has a market cap of $24.01 billion, a PE ratio of 23.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 1.79. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $200.79 and a 200-day moving average of $165.64.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.17%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total transaction of $560,552.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $8,228,767.32. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WSM. Alpha Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 3rd quarter valued at about $216,000. CWM LLC increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,459 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 1,274 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 129.6% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 29,056 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,501,000 after purchasing an additional 16,401 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 220.5% during the 3rd quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 6,887 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,067,000 after buying an additional 4,738 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 123.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 2,304 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $357,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.