Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Stock Price Down 4.7%

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) shares dropped 4.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $143.84 and last traded at $144.00. Approximately 66,090 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 97% from the average daily volume of 2,025,837 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.15.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Thursday, May 23rd. Wedbush decreased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $350.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $150.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $137.50 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $131.69.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Down 0.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $19.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.75. The company has a 50-day moving average of $148.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $135.80.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 22nd. The specialty retailer reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.65. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.83% and a return on equity of 54.50%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 7.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, July 19th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 19th. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.99%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In related news, insider Monica Bhargava sold 17,862 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $149.14, for a total transaction of $2,663,938.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Williams-Sonoma news, EVP David Randolph King sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.93, for a total transaction of $2,878,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 101,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,539,879.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Monica Bhargava sold 17,862 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $149.14, for a total value of $2,663,938.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 117,862 shares of company stock valued at $18,171,039 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 81.1% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,787 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $300,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 17,426 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,516,000 after buying an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $250,000. Finally, Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter worth $97,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.