Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Upgraded by Robert W. Baird to “Outperform” Rating

Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) from a neutral rating to an outperform rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $170.00 price target on the specialty retailer’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $226.00 to $208.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, April 4th. UBS Group raised shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $140.00 to $165.00 in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Gordon Haskett upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $178.93.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 13.8 %

NYSE:WSM opened at $158.38 on Monday. Williams-Sonoma has a 1 year low of $125.33 and a 1 year high of $219.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.56 billion, a PE ratio of 18.73, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.76. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $181.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $173.70.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.88 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $5.44 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is 29.30%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total value of $273,602.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.78, for a total transaction of $4,973,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,018,374 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $168,826,041.72. The trade was a 2.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 112,720 shares of company stock valued at $20,616,369. 1.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Hobbs Group Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

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.