Evercore ISI Increases Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Price Target to $300.00

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) had its price objective lifted by stock analysts at Evercore ISI from $240.00 to $300.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “in-line” rating on the specialty retailer’s stock. Evercore ISI’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 5.11% from the company’s current price.

WSM has been the subject of a number of other research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $110.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 17th. StockNews.com raised Williams-Sonoma from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Telsey Advisory Group lifted their price target on Williams-Sonoma from $215.00 to $265.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 11th. Bank of America upped their price objective on Williams-Sonoma from $222.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their price target on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $230.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $230.06.

Williams-Sonoma Stock Up 0.6 %

WSM traded up $1.65 during trading on Thursday, reaching $285.42. 1,253,396 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,093,709. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $221.06 and its 200 day moving average is $186.91. Williams-Sonoma has a 12 month low of $109.44 and a 12 month high of $292.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.31 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.66.

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 13th. The specialty retailer reported $5.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.06 by $0.38. Williams-Sonoma had a return on equity of 55.15% and a net margin of 12.25%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Williams-Sonoma will post 14.72 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Laura Alber sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $201.92, for a total transaction of $4,038,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 525,509 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $106,110,777.28. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams-Sonoma

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 0.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,269,096 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $283,955,000 after purchasing an additional 15,078 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Williams-Sonoma by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,456,161 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $226,287,000 after acquiring an additional 18,004 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 24.1% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,408,911 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $204,292,000 after acquiring an additional 273,424 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 3.2% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,142,272 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $142,944,000 after acquiring an additional 35,315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Williams-Sonoma by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 970,737 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $195,882,000 after purchasing an additional 23,918 shares during the period. 99.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Williams-Sonoma

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.