Wells Fargo & Company Lowers Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Price Target to $170.00

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Free Report) had its price objective cut by Wells Fargo & Company from $195.00 to $170.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the specialty retailer's stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $153.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $140.00 to $165.00 in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Williams-Sonoma presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $177.93.

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Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

WSM traded up $6.67 during trading on Thursday, hitting $170.32. The stock had a trading volume of 2,402,826 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,917,783. Williams-Sonoma has a twelve month low of $125.33 and a twelve month high of $219.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. The company's 50-day moving average price is $197.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $172.60.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $5.44 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.30%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. The trade was a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. This represents a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smithfield Trust Co boosted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.