Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Williams Companies from hold to sell, even though the broader analyst view remains positive with an average Buy rating and a consensus price target of $82.94.
• Williams Companies beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter, posting $0.73 EPS versus the $0.63 estimate. However, revenue came in below forecasts at $3.03 billion, and quarterly revenue slipped slightly year over year.
• Insider selling has been notable, with COO Larry C. Larsen and SVP Glen G. Jasek both selling shares recently. Over the last three months, insiders sold 68,500 shares worth about $5.18 million.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report released on Saturday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Williams Companies from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce increased their price objective on Williams Companies from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperformer" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Williams Companies from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $82.94.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

WMB stock opened at $73.09 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.06, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.57. Williams Companies has a 1 year low of $55.82 and a 1 year high of $80.07. The stock's fifty day moving average is $74.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.23.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.10. Williams Companies had a net margin of 23.39% and a return on equity of 18.34%. The business had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Williams Companies will post 2.44 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In related news, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.48, for a total transaction of $917,760.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 98,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,511,789.12. The trade was a 10.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Glen G. Jasek sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.15, for a total value of $195,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 54,101 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,227,993.15. This trade represents a 4.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 68,500 shares of company stock valued at $5,182,655. Insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Williams Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of WMB. CX Institutional lifted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 1.9% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 10,709 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $796,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Adelphi Trust Co grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 13.9% during the second quarter. Adelphi Trust Co now owns 5,942 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $442,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC raised its position in Williams Companies by 16.0% in the first quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 13,941 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,015,000 after acquiring an additional 1,926 shares in the last quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Williams Companies by 19.3% in the first quarter. Western Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,503 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $328,000 after acquiring an additional 730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Militia Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Williams Companies in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,794,000. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

About Williams Companies

Williams Companies, Inc NYSE: WMB is a U.S.-based energy infrastructure company focused on the midstream segment of the natural gas value chain. The company develops, owns and operates assets that gather, process, transport and store natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs). Its operations support the movement of gas from production areas to end users including utilities, power generators, industrial customers and export facilities.

Williams’s product and service offering includes interstate and intrastate pipeline transmission, gas-gathering systems, processing facilities that remove impurities and separate NGLs, storage services and fractionation and transportation of NGL products.

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