Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Price Target Raised to $165.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its price target upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $140.00 to $165.00 in a report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on WSM. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $148.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 11th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $140.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $154.41.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $172.95 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $143.08 and a 200-day simple moving average of $144.74. Williams-Sonoma has a twelve month low of $89.87 and a twelve month high of $181.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.85 billion, a PE ratio of 20.46, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 1.76.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.29% and a return on equity of 51.57%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.56 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 18th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.97%.

Insider Activity

In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,040,099. The trade was a 42.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.27, for a total transaction of $5,810,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,030,956 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,766,978.12. This trade represents a 3.73 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 91,100 shares of company stock valued at $12,525,126. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 72.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,781,201 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,360,384,000 after purchasing an additional 3,695,837 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 108.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,329,125 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $825,588,000 after purchasing an additional 2,777,339 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 107.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,689,451 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $418,223,000 after buying an additional 1,393,436 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $326,931,000 after buying an additional 1,145,410 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 324.4% during the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,036,256 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $160,537,000 after buying an additional 792,068 shares during the last quarter. 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.