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

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by research analysts at Mizuho from $47.00 to $56.00 in a report released on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "outperform" rating on the pipeline company's stock. Mizuho's target price points to a potential upside of 7.40% from the stock's current price.

WMB has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com lowered Williams Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Williams Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $52.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, October 4th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Williams Companies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Williams Companies from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $49.62.

Williams Companies Price Performance

Williams Companies stock traded up $0.58 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $52.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,719,253 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,247,241. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.55 billion, a PE ratio of 22.12, a P/E/G ratio of 5.87 and a beta of 1.03. Williams Companies has a fifty-two week low of $32.65 and a fifty-two week high of $52.85. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $47.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.45.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.11% and a return on equity of 16.17%. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.42 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Williams Companies will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.29, for a total value of $90,580.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 304,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,777,218. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Williams Companies by 15.7% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 108,302 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $4,221,000 after buying an additional 14,672 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its holdings in Williams Companies by 145.5% in the first quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 95,359 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $3,716,000 after purchasing an additional 56,509 shares during the last quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Williams Companies by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC now owns 51,927 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $2,370,000 after purchasing an additional 419 shares in the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd purchased a new stake in Williams Companies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $2,364,000. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 1,855.7% in the 3rd quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 42,029 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,918,000 after purchasing an additional 39,880 shares in the last quarter. 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.