Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Earns Underperform Rating from Analysts at Zelman & Associates

Zelman & Associates initiated coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm issued an underperform rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

WSM has been the subject of several other reports. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $220.00 price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Friday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $195.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wedbush decreased their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $190.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $181.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $175.94.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Performance

NYSE WSM opened at $174.02 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $156.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $175.39. Williams-Sonoma has a one year low of $125.33 and a one year high of $219.98. The firm has a market cap of $21.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.57.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.88 by $0.40. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 51.56% and a net margin of 14.54%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.34 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.44 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.52%. This is a boost from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is 29.30%.

Insider Activity at Williams-Sonoma

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 36,312 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.79, for a total value of $6,020,166.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,690,666.52. The trade was a 43.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 8,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $151.53, for a total transaction of $1,212,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,501,002.65. The trade was a 32.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 80,635 shares of company stock valued at $13,236,175 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 99.0% during the 1st quarter. Quarry LP now owns 199 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Sentry Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Costello Asset Management INC acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. 99.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.