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

Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seventeen ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have given a hold recommendation and nine have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $55.07.

WMB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Williams Companies from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, CIBC raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th.

Williams Companies Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of WMB opened at $58.42 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.50. Williams Companies has a 1 year low of $36.84 and a 1 year high of $61.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.23 billion, a PE ratio of 31.92, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.03. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $56.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.66.

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

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. This is a boost from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 109.29%.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 8,896 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.50, for a total transaction 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 filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Larry C. Larsen sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total transaction of $455,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 81,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,627,229.10. This represents a 8.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 139,583 shares of company stock worth $7,563,278. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams Companies

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Menard Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, Sandy Spring Bank acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. 86.44% of the stock is owned by 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.