Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.09 EPS

Williams-Sonoma (NYSE:WSM – Get Rating) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The specialty retailer reported $5.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.41 by $0.09, Briefing.com reports. Williams-Sonoma had a net margin of 13.48% and a return on equity of 83.08%. The company had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.60 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $5.42 earnings per share. Williams-Sonoma’s quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Williams-Sonoma updated its FY 2023 guidance to EPS.

Williams-Sonoma Trading Up 1.1 %

Williams-Sonoma stock opened at $119.95 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.62. Williams-Sonoma has a 1-year low of $101.58 and a 1-year high of $176.89. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $126.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.55.

Williams-Sonoma Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 21st will be given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This is an increase from Williams-Sonoma’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 20th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. Williams-Sonoma’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WSM. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 7.9% in the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 46,227 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $6,915,000 after purchasing an additional 3,373 shares in the last quarter. Aviva PLC grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 9.7% in the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 14,762 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,140,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 0.3% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 391,118 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $56,712,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in Williams-Sonoma by 1,415.9% in the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 2,092 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $303,000 after purchasing an additional 1,954 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Williams-Sonoma in the first quarter valued at $292,000. Institutional investors own 99.49% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $145.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 18th. Telsey Advisory Group cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $155.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on shares of Williams-Sonoma in a report on Tuesday, December 13th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $170.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of Williams-Sonoma from $123.00 to $109.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $127.47.

Williams-Sonoma Company Profile

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Williams-Sonoma, Inc engages in the retailing of home products. It operates through the following segments: Pottery Barn, West Elm, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn Kids and Teen and Other. The Other segment includes net revenues from international franchise operations, Rejuvenation and Mark and Graham.