Williams-Sonoma, Inc. (NYSE:WSM - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $170.00 to $195.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Williams-Sonoma traded as high as $210.91 and last traded at $209.73, with a volume of 1851382 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $202.83.
Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen increased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $136.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Barclays increased their target price on Williams-Sonoma from $116.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Wedbush raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $135.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group raised their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $165.00 to $190.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $163.16.
View Our Latest Stock Report on WSM
In related news, CFO Jeffrey Howie sold 3,160 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.39, for a total transaction of $560,552.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 46,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,228,767.32. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Laura Alber sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.49, for a total value of $5,219,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 990,956 shares of the company's stock, valued at $129,309,848.44. This represents a 3.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WSM. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 4,948 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $916,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares in the last quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Precedent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 13,782 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,552,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Williams-Sonoma by 22.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,742 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,236 shares in the last quarter. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $278,000. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Williams-Sonoma during the 4th quarter valued at $258,000. 99.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.
The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $180.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 1.79.
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 17th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 17th. Williams-Sonoma's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.97%.
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.
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