Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM – Get Rating) in a report published on Thursday morning. The brokerage issued a buy rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

WSM has been the subject of a number of other reports. Telsey Advisory Group dropped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $142.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 14th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, March 9th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $192.00 to $151.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 18th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $150.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Monday, November 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $109.00 and set a sell rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 12th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $127.47.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $116.86 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $126.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $125.08. Williams-Sonoma has a one year low of $101.58 and a one year high of $176.89. The company has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.08, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.62.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 16th. The specialty retailer reported $5.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.41 by $0.09. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.48% and a return on equity of 83.08%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma will post 13.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 26th. Investors of record on Friday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 20th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is currently 18.91%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 1.3% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 103,899 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $12,438,000 after buying an additional 1,314 shares during the period. Credit Suisse AG boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 6.4% during the third quarter. Credit Suisse AG now owns 95,107 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $11,208,000 after acquiring an additional 5,680 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the second quarter worth about $5,119,000. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the third quarter worth about $3,903,000. Finally, Intersect Capital LLC boosted its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 51.8% during the second quarter. Intersect Capital LLC now owns 3,872 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $430,000 after acquiring an additional 1,322 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.49% of the company’s stock.

About Williams-Sonoma

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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.