Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Given New $180.00 Price Target at Evercore ISI

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its target price increased by Evercore ISI from $140.00 to $180.00 in a research report sent to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an in-line rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on WSM. Telsey Advisory Group boosted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Barclays raised their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $148.00 to $156.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $154.41.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $171.98 on Thursday. Williams-Sonoma has a fifty-two week low of $90.31 and a fifty-two week high of $181.42. The company has a market cap of $21.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 1.76. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $143.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $144.87.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The company had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.56 EPS. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,309,848.44. The trade was a 3.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,040,099. This trade represents a 42.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 91,100 shares of company stock valued at $12,525,126. 1.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,536 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 4,901 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 97.1% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $955,000 after buying an additional 3,038 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 27.2% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,512 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,966,000 after buying an additional 8,237 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Williams-Sonoma by 118.7% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,110,320 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $326,931,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145,410 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Novare Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 68.7% during the 3rd quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC now owns 10,145 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,572,000 after acquiring an additional 4,132 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.