Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have issued a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $198.7059.

WSM has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $225.00 to $210.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $206.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, UBS Group set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 20th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 12,161 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.07, for a total transaction of $2,201,992.27. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 846,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $153,353,071.89. The trade was a 1.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WSM. TrueMark Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $338,000. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 12,203 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,179,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $253,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 405.1% during the fourth quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 5,263 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $940,000 after purchasing an additional 4,221 shares during the period. Finally, Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 1,602 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $286,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

WSM stock opened at $206.40 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a 50-day moving average of $186.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $189.40. Williams-Sonoma has a 52-week low of $130.07 and a 52-week high of $219.98.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.10% and a net margin of 14.30%.The business had revenue of $1.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 16th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 16th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is 29.04%.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.