Royal Bank of Canada Raises Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Price Target to $165.00

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its price target lifted by Royal Bank of Canada from $150.00 to $165.00 in a report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Royal Bank of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on WSM. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $127.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a sell rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research note on Thursday, August 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $125.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research note on Friday. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $146.00 to $167.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research note on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $154.31.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of WSM opened at $181.97 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $153.76 and a 200-day moving average of $137.10. Williams-Sonoma has a one year low of $109.44 and a one year high of $182.00. The company has a market cap of $12.05 billion, a PE ratio of 12.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.55.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 16th. The specialty retailer reported $3.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.34 by $0.32. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 61.68%. The company had revenue of $1.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. Analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 13.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 20th will be given a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 19th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 24.98%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Marta Benson sold 10,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.68, for a total transaction of $1,406,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,238 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,630,201.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.00, for a total transaction of $15,000,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 565,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $84,875,250. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Marta Benson sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.68, for a total transaction of $1,406,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,238 shares in the company, valued at $7,630,201.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 130,000 shares of company stock worth $19,496,290. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 235.2% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,384,403 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $168,426,000 after acquiring an additional 971,370 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 4th quarter valued at $55,499,000. Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 2nd quarter valued at $56,497,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $50,715,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 320.6% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 426,300 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $12,022,000 after purchasing an additional 324,941 shares during the last quarter. 99.76% of the stock is 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.