Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Hits New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Williams Companies achieved a new 52-week high of $65.55 during trading, closing at $64.74 with over 761,000 shares exchanged.
• Analysts have upgraded their ratings for Williams Companies, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.00.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50, representing a 3.1% yield, with a payout ratio of 100.50%.

Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $65.55 and last traded at $64.74, with a volume of 761163 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $63.69.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. CIBC raised Williams Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and set a $64.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Williams Companies from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.00.

Williams Companies Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $78.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.65. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $58.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 21.63%.The company's revenue was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.43 EPS. Williams Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.010-2.190 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio is presently 100.50%.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In related news, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.47, for a total transaction of $263,115.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,612 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,537,973.64. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.62, for a total value of $115,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 311,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,956,984.90. This represents a 0.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,500 shares of company stock worth $497,715 over the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams Companies

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $765,164,000. BROOKFIELD Corp ON boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 190.3% during the 2nd quarter. BROOKFIELD Corp ON now owns 12,028,186 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $755,490,000 after acquiring an additional 7,884,730 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $335,419,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Williams Companies by 45.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,339,078 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $677,623,000 after acquiring an additional 3,519,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 27.3% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 14,417,821 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $905,583,000 after buying an additional 3,089,390 shares in 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.

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