Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Stock Price

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) had its target price boosted by Barclays from $46.00 to $56.00 in a research report released on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $51.00 price target on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Friday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.00.

Williams Companies Price Performance

Shares of WMB opened at $55.61 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.79 billion, a PE ratio of 23.46, a PEG ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The company’s 50-day moving average is $55.77 and its 200-day moving average is $49.17. Williams Companies has a fifty-two week low of $32.65 and a fifty-two week high of $60.36.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.01. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 15.89%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Williams Companies will post 1.92 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In related news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total value of $447,641.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,858 shares in the company, valued at $1,455,805.40. This trade represents a 23.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams Companies

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of WMB. Savant Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Williams Companies by 19.6% during the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 15,519 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $660,000 after buying an additional 2,548 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in Williams Companies by 173.0% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 78,254 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $3,324,000 after purchasing an additional 49,586 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 557.1% during the 2nd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 143,102 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $6,082,000 after purchasing an additional 121,324 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $145,000. Finally, BOKF NA boosted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 28.6% in the 2nd quarter. BOKF NA now owns 115,478 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $4,908,000 after purchasing an additional 25,649 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Company Profile

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.