Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) Stock Has Average Target Price of $86.35 According to Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a bullish view of Williams Companies, with 18 buy, three strong-buy, and one hold ratings among 22 analysts. The average 12-month price target is $86.35, above the reported share price of $72.45.
• Williams reported quarterly revenue of $3.05 billion, up 9.8% year over year, while EPS of $0.50 matched consensus estimates. Analysts expect full-year EPS of approximately $2.41.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.525, or $2.10 annually, representing a 2.9% yield. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the stock, while insiders sold 19,000 shares worth about $1.4 million over the past three months.

Shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus rating of "Buy" from the twenty-two analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eighteen have issued a buy recommendation and three have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $86.35.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Capital One Financial initiated coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $92.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Williams Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Terrance Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.85, for a total transaction of $135,700.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 262,259 shares in the company, valued at $17,794,273.15. This trade represents a 0.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders sold 19,000 shares of company stock worth $1,401,430. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Apella Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 2.3% during the second quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 5,988 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $450,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC boosted its position in Williams Companies by 56.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC now owns 386 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. Mirador Capital Partners LP grew its stake in Williams Companies by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 16,153 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,201,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Aletheian Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Williams Companies by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. Aletheian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,830 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Williams Companies by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Mill Creek Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,000 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $361,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

NYSE WMB opened at $72.45 on Wednesday. Williams Companies has a 52-week low of $56.19 and a 52-week high of $80.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.48. The company has a market capitalization of $88.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a fifty day moving average of $72.19 and a 200-day moving average of $73.13.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The pipeline company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 18.49% and a net margin of 25.17%.The business had revenue of $3.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.350-2.350 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Williams Companies will post 2.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th were paid a $0.5250 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 11th. Williams Companies's payout ratio is 83.67%.

Williams Companies Company Profile

Williams Companies, Inc is an energy infrastructure company focused primarily on the gathering, processing, storage and transportation of natural gas and natural gas liquids. Through its extensive network of pipelines and related facilities, the company connects major U.S. producing regions with utilities, industrial customers, power generators and other energy markets.

Williams' principal assets include the Transco interstate natural gas pipeline, which serves markets along the U.S. East Coast, as well as gathering and processing operations in regions such as the Appalachian Basin, the Rocky Mountains and the Western United States.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.