Ralph Lauren vs Williams-Sonoma

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KIRA’s take AI analyst

I put Ralph Lauren and Williams-Sonoma side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:

Ralph Lauren is the larger business, with $8.1B of revenue in fiscal 2026 against $7.8B for Williams-Sonoma.
Ralph Lauren grew revenue faster (14.6%, against 1.2%).
Williams-Sonoma kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (18.1% operating margin, against 14.5%).
Williams-Sonoma turned more of its sales into free cash flow (13.5% FCF margin, against 9.2%).
Williams-Sonoma earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (106.5%, against 45.4%).
Investors pay more for each dollar of Williams-Sonoma’s earnings: a P/E of 25.6x against 24.4x for Ralph Lauren.

Who comes out ahead

Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.

Ralph Lauren

4/11

Revenue growth5-year growthGross marginPiotroski F-score

Williams-Sonoma

WSM

7/11

Operating marginNet marginFCF marginReturn on capitalReturn on equityNet debt / EBITDAShare count change

Side by side

Best in the row

Latest fiscal year	RL FY26	WSM FY25
Size
Market cap	$23.7B	$29.7B
Revenue	$8.1B	$7.8B
Free cash flow	$746M	$1.1B
Net income	$941M	$1.1B
Growth
Revenue growth	14.6%	1.2%
5-year growth	13.0%	2.9%
Share count change	−2.7%	−3.8%
Profitability
Gross margin	69.9%	46.2%
Operating margin	14.5%	18.1%
Net margin	11.6%	13.9%
FCF margin	9.2%	13.5%
Return on capital	45.4%	106.5%
Return on equity	34.7%	51.5%
Balance sheet
Net debt	−$593M	−$1.0B
Net debt / EBITDA	−0.4x	−0.6x
Dividends and buybacks	$840M	$1.2B
Valuation & quality
P/E	24.4x	25.6x
Piotroski F-score	8	5

Ten years

Revenue

FY17

RL $6.7B

WSM $5.3B

FY18

RL $6.2B

WSM $5.7B

FY19

RL $6.3B

WSM $5.9B

FY20

RL $6.2B

WSM $6.8B

FY21

RL $4.4B

WSM $8.2B

FY22

RL $6.2B

WSM $8.7B

FY23

RL $6.4B

WSM $7.8B

FY24

RL $6.6B

WSM $7.7B

FY25

RL $7.1B

WSM $7.8B

FY26

RL $8.1B

WSM —

FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

RL WSM

Operating margin

FY17

RL −1.4%

WSM 8.6%

FY18

RL 8.1%

WSM 7.7%

FY19

RL 8.9%

WSM 7.9%

FY20

RL 5.2%

WSM 13.4%

FY21

RL −1.0%

WSM 17.6%

FY22

RL 12.8%

WSM 17.3%

FY23

RL 10.9%

WSM 16.1%

FY24

RL 11.4%

WSM 18.6%

FY25

RL 13.2%

WSM 18.1%

FY26

RL 14.5%

WSM —

FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

RL WSM

Free cash flow

FY17

RL $669M

WSM $310M

FY18

RL $814M

WSM $396M

FY19

RL $586M

WSM $421M

FY20

RL $484M

WSM $1.1B

FY21

RL $273M

WSM $1.1B

FY22

RL $549M

WSM $699M

FY23

RL $194M

WSM $1.5B

FY24

RL $905M

WSM $1.1B

FY25

RL $1.0B

WSM $1.1B

FY26

RL $746M

WSM —

FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

RL WSM

Return on capital

FY17

RL −2.5%

WSM 24.3%

FY18

RL 10.9%

WSM 30.4%

FY19

RL 19.5%

WSM 32.7%

FY20

RL 15.2%

WSM 74.8%

FY21

RL −1.8%

WSM 144.2%

FY22

RL 33.5%

WSM 104.9%

FY23

RL 24.9%

WSM 84.4%

FY24

RL 28.4%

WSM 120.7%

FY25

RL 36.5%

WSM 106.5%

FY26

RL 45.4%

WSM —

FY17 FY18 FY19 FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

RL WSM

Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.