Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the eighteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $158.78.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on WSM shares. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, 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 research report on Thursday, November 21st.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 0.8 %

Williams-Sonoma stock traded down $1.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $186.05. 772,160 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,984,610. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $161.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $150.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.00, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.81. Williams-Sonoma has a fifty-two week low of $95.76 and a fifty-two week high of $199.41.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. Williams-Sonoma's payout ratio is 26.98%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was 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 directly owns 46,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WSM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 118.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 622,279 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $96,403,000 after purchasing an additional 337,564 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 84.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,020,489 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $158,085,000 after purchasing an additional 467,407 shares during the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 106.2% in the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 3,885 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $602,000 after purchasing an additional 2,001 shares during the last quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 98.0% during the 3rd quarter. Logan Capital Management Inc. now owns 182,328 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $28,246,000 after buying an additional 90,230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 72.3% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 206,645 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $32,013,000 after buying an additional 86,742 shares during the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.