Analysts Set Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) PT at $209.56

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $209.5625.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on WSM shares. Evercore set a $215.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $188.00 to $208.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Zelman & Associates upgraded Williams-Sonoma from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $205.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings raised Williams-Sonoma from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 19th.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $180.25 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $201.52 and a 200 day moving average of $194.45. The stock has a market cap of $21.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.64. Williams-Sonoma has a 12 month low of $130.07 and a 12 month high of $222.00.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.14. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 51.45%. The business had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.28 EPS. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is 29.83%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 767 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.16, for a total value of $157,357.72. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 13,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,715,497.76. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.04, for a total transaction of $3,660,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 786,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $143,967,732.48. This represents a 2.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 55,767 shares of company stock valued at $11,076,808. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 111.8% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 144 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 130.8% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 180 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MidFirst Bank bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

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.