Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the eighteen brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have given a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $158.78.

WSM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wedbush increased their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $187.55 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.18, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 1.81. Williams-Sonoma has a 1 year low of $95.76 and a 1 year high of $199.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $165.28 and its 200 day moving average is $151.77.

Williams-Sonoma Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, January 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.22%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total value of $560,552.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WSM. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 186.0% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 7,536 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 4,901 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 97.1% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,167 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $955,000 after purchasing an additional 3,038 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 94.8% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 19,535 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $3,026,000 after purchasing an additional 9,509 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 27.2% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 38,512 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $5,966,000 after purchasing an additional 8,237 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 67.4% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 29,959 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $4,641,000 after purchasing an additional 12,061 shares during the period. 99.29% of the stock is 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.