The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.29.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on WMB. Truist Financial lifted 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. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Friday, January 10th.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Williams Companies stock opened at $58.46 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. Williams Companies has a 1-year low of $34.13 and a 1-year high of $61.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.27 billion, a PE ratio of 31.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.10 and a beta of 1.04.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 21.17%. As a group, analysts expect that Williams Companies will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 103.83%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quent Capital LLC bought a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Sandy Spring Bank purchased a new position in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. bought a new position in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 86.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.