Williams Companies Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:WMB)

Key Points

• Unusually high options activity: Traders purchased 227,655 Williams Companies call options, roughly 1,865% above the average call volume.
• Positive analyst sentiment: Analysts maintain an overall “Buy” rating, with an average price target of $86.35 compared with the stock’s recent price of $72.77.
• Solid operating and income profile: Williams reported quarterly revenue of $3.05 billion, up 9.8% year over year, and pays a $2.10 annualized dividend yielding about 2.9%.

Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Traders bought 227,655 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,865% compared to the average volume of 11,587 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on WMB. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Williams Companies from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Barclays assumed coverage on Williams Companies in a report on Thursday, October 1st. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $82.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $86.35.

Williams Companies Stock Up 0.6%

Williams Companies stock traded up $0.43 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $72.77. 3,588,275 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,051,533. Williams Companies has a 1 year low of $56.19 and a 1 year high of $80.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $89.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $72.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $73.11.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The pipeline company reported $0.50 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $3.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.46 EPS. Williams Companies's quarterly 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. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Williams Companies will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.85, for a total transaction of $135,700.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 262,259 shares of the company's stock, valued at $17,794,273.15. This trade represents a 0.76% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders sold 19,000 shares of company stock worth $1,401,430. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams Companies

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMB. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter worth $2,504,000. Infrastructure Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at $15,277,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company bought a new stake in Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at $77,998,000. Cynosure Group LLC bought a new stake in Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at $647,000. Finally, SIR Capital Management L.P. grew its position in Williams Companies by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. SIR Capital Management L.P. now owns 525,232 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $31,572,000 after purchasing an additional 150,032 shares during the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Williams Companies

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.