Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Lifted to “Buy” at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report published on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has $156.00 target price on the specialty retailer’s stock, up from their prior target price of $148.00.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an outperform rating and issued a $170.00 price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Monday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $137.50 to $155.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 4th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a hold rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $135.00 and set an in-line rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $232.00 to $116.00 and set an underweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $140.50.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $144.50 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.74, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.74. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $142.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $144.20. Williams-Sonoma has a 12 month low of $69.95 and a 12 month high of $174.26.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.13. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.57% and a net margin of 14.29%. The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.56 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma will post 7.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.99%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.66, for a total value of $1,494,726.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,040,099. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.45, for a total value of $6,258,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,070,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $167,551,066.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Karalyn Smith sold 11,100 shares of the company’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 transaction of $1,494,726.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,150 shares in the company, valued at $2,040,099. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 2nd quarter worth $6,129,000. Creekside Partners purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter valued at about $404,000. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 12,786 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,610,000 after acquiring an additional 741 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 4.7% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 153,491 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $43,341,000 after purchasing an additional 6,945 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 32.3% in the second quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 865 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $244,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

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.