Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Reaches New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $234.42 and last traded at $221.5530, with a volume of 2020554 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $227.18.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on WSM. Evercore set a $200.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays set a $190.00 price objective on Williams-Sonoma and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Williams-Sonoma from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $185.00 to $218.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $235.00 to $225.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $250.00 to $225.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams-Sonoma has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $211.47.

Williams-Sonoma Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $26.09 billion, a PE ratio of 24.81, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 1.51. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $194.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $194.76.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 21st. The specialty retailer reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.80 billion. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 53.29% and a net margin of 13.81%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Williams-Sonoma, Inc. will post 9.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams-Sonoma Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 17th. Williams-Sonoma’s payout ratio is presently 29.56%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 32,684 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $180.64, for a total transaction of $5,904,037.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,166,688.32. The trade was a 48.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of Williams-Sonoma stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.61, for a total value of $3,452,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 938,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,998,627.64. The trade was a 2.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 88,004 shares of company stock valued at $16,420,107 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 44,195 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $8,058,000 after buying an additional 3,978 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 3,203 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $584,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Keel Point LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter valued at about $355,000. Western Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams-Sonoma during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,029,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 102.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,108,589 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $202,129,000 after buying an additional 561,977 shares in the last quarter. 99.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.