Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Raised to “Neutral” at UBS Group

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) was upgraded by equities research analysts at UBS Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Briefing.com Automated Import reports. The brokerage currently has a $165.00 price objective on the specialty retailer’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $140.00. UBS Group’s price objective points to a potential downside of 0.72% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on WSM. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a research note on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $194.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $178.00.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of NYSE:WSM opened at $166.20 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $198.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $171.88. Williams-Sonoma has a 12-month low of $125.33 and a 12-month high of $219.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.82.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 19th. The specialty retailer reported $3.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.34 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.44 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Williams-Sonoma will post 8.36 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Williams-Sonoma news, CEO Laura Alber sold 45,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $207.76, for a total value of $9,349,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 944,666 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,263,808.16. The trade was a 4.55 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 1,408 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.32, for a total transaction of $273,602.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,014,116.16. This trade represents a 2.95 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WSM. Smithfield Trust Co grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 160 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hobbs Group Advisors LLC now owns 236 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors own 99.29% of the company’s stock.

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.