Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Shares Gap Up on Strong Earnings

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM – Get Rating)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $112.16, but opened at $116.60. Williams-Sonoma shares last traded at $115.26, with a volume of 720,507 shares changing hands.

The specialty retailer reported $2.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $1.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.00% and a return on equity of 80.17%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.50 EPS.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. This is a positive change from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 20th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.15%. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 21.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WSM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $126.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $114.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Friday, March 17th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $151.00 to $143.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 17th. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 9th. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $205.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Friday, March 17th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $127.18.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Royce & Associates LP acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $841,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 713,013 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $86,744,000 after purchasing an additional 6,933 shares during the period. Hook Mill Capital Partners LP lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Hook Mill Capital Partners LP now owns 87,379 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $10,124,000 after purchasing an additional 6,371 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 12,852 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,548,000 after purchasing an additional 993 shares during the period. Finally, Alaethes Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC now owns 8,121 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $988,000 after purchasing an additional 556 shares during the period. 99.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $117.79 and its 200-day moving average is $121.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.98, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.61.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

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Williams-Sonoma, Inc engages in the retailing of home products. It operates through the following segments: Pottery Barn, West Elm, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn Kids and Teen and Other. The Other segment includes net revenues from international franchise operations, Rejuvenation and Mark and Graham.