Royal Bank Of Canada Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Stock Price

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its price objective cut by stock analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $213.00 to $191.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the specialty retailer’s stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price suggests a potential upside of 11.61% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. UBS Group upped their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Zelman & Associates upgraded shares of Williams-Sonoma from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $205.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Evercore set a $200.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $206.38.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE WSM opened at $171.13 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $20.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 1.49. Williams-Sonoma has a twelve month low of $147.39 and a twelve month high of $222.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $184.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $192.21.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, March 18th. The specialty retailer reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.14. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.94% and a return on equity of 51.45%. The business had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.28 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Karalyn Yearout sold 2,267 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.49, for a total value of $436,374.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 23,351 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,494,833.99. The trade was a 8.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 32,684 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.64, for a total value of $5,904,037.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 34,138 shares in the company, valued at $6,166,688.32. This trade represents a 48.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 71,370 shares of company stock valued at $13,268,623 in the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Williams-Sonoma

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 51.5% in the fourth quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 147 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC raised its stake in Williams-Sonoma by 229.4% during the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 168 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in Williams-Sonoma during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

Williams‑Sonoma, Inc is a specialty retailer focused on the home and culinary markets, best known for premium cookware, kitchen tools and home furnishings. The company traces its roots to a single cookware store founded by Chuck Williams in 1956 in Sonoma, California, and has evolved into a multi‑brand home furnishings and housewares business. Its merchandise mix spans cookware and kitchen electrics, tabletop and food prep items, furniture, bedding, lighting and decorative accessories designed for both everyday use and higher‑end interiors.

The company operates a portfolio of consumer brands that target distinct segments of the home market.