Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Stock Rating Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has $156.00 price objective on the specialty retailer’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $148.00.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group restated an outperform rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $158.00 to $145.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Wedbush decreased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $150.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $140.50.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE:WSM opened at $144.51 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $18.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 1.74. Williams-Sonoma has a fifty-two week low of $69.95 and a fifty-two week high of $174.26. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $142.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $144.39.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 51.57%. The business had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.56 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 7.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.99%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.45, for a total transaction of $6,258,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,070,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $167,551,066.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.45, for a total transaction of $6,258,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,070,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $167,551,066.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 $2,040,099. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. EntryPoint Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 520.0% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 93 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Contravisory Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently 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.