The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Receives $60.50 Average Target Price from Analysts

The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $60.75.

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Williams Companies from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, CIBC lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th.

Williams Companies Price Performance

NYSE WMB traded down $0.73 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $59.90. The company had a trading volume of 1,253,987 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,579,253. Williams Companies has a twelve month low of $40.06 and a twelve month high of $61.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $58.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.17. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The company has a market capitalization of $73.03 billion, a PE ratio of 32.73, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.66.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 21.17%. The firm had revenue of $3.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.59 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Williams Companies will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 106.95%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 8,896 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.50, for a total value of $511,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 22,339 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,284,492.50. This trade represents a 28.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Larry C. Larsen sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total transaction of $455,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 81,265 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,627,229.10. The trade was a 8.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 113,583 shares of company stock valued at $6,095,318 in the last quarter. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Williams Companies by 3.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 3,271,141 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $149,326,000 after purchasing an additional 108,675 shares in the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,636 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Williams Companies by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 13,680 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $740,000 after buying an additional 3,969 shares during the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $319,000. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its stake in Williams Companies by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,463 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

About Williams Companies

The Williams Companies, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy infrastructure company primarily in the United States. It operates through Transmission & Gulf of Mexico, Northeast G&P, West, and Gas & NGL Marketing Services segments. The Transmission & Gulf of Mexico segment comprises natural gas pipelines; Transco, Northwest pipeline, MountainWest, and related natural gas storage facilities; and natural gas gathering and processing, and crude oil production handling and transportation assets in the Gulf Coast region.