JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Stock Price

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its price objective raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $153.00 to $168.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on WSM. UBS Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the company from $140.00 to $165.00 in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $162.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $176.13.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM stock opened at $165.29 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $20.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.55, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82. Williams-Sonoma has a 1-year low of $125.33 and a 1-year high of $219.98. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $197.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $171.83.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 14.54% and a return on equity of 51.56%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.44 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares in the company, valued at $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares in the company, valued at $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % 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 company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the third quarter valued at $28,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Kozak & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by 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.