The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Receives $53.00 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Hold" by the seventeen brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One investment 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 12-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $53.29.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th.

Williams Companies Price Performance

WMB traded down $0.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $57.00. 7,440,826 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,491,523. Williams Companies has a 1-year low of $33.03 and a 1-year high of $61.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.48 billion, a PE ratio of 24.05, a P/E/G ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 1.04. 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 business's 50-day moving average price is $55.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.77.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.89% and a net margin of 27.36%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Williams Companies will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Williams Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio is 80.17%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 5,568 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $300,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Williams Companies by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,889 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $968,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the period. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 1,184 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Sprinkle Financial Consultants LLC boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Sprinkle Financial Consultants LLC now owns 5,073 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $275,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank grew its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 30,813 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,669,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.