Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group to “Hold”

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) from an underperform rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has $144.00 price objective on the specialty retailer’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $116.00.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, August 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Thursday, August 24th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Thursday, August 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a report on Thursday, August 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $143.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Thursday, August 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $143.56.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 1.3 %

NYSE WSM opened at $150.22 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $149.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $133.34. Williams-Sonoma has a twelve month low of $109.44 and a twelve month high of $164.47. The company has a market capitalization of $9.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.38, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.55.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $3.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.41. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 64.43% and a net margin of 11.68%. The business had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.87 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 13.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Investors of record on Friday, October 20th will be given a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 19th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.88%.

Insider Transactions at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, CEO Marta Benson sold 10,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.68, for a total transaction of $1,406,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,630,201.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Marta Benson sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.68, for a total value of $1,406,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,238 shares in the company, valued at $7,630,201.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $15,000,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 565,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $84,875,250. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.4% during the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 20,207 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,140,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 26.5% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 558 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the period. Bank of Stockton lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.2% during the third quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 8,879 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,281,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 0.9% during the third quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 10,072 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,565,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Beaumont Asset Management L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 2.2% during the third quarter. Beaumont Asset Management L.L.C. now owns 4,558 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $708,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. 99.76% 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.