Williams Companies' (WMB) Sector Perform Rating Reaffirmed at Scotiabank

Scotiabank reaffirmed their sector perform rating on shares of Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) in a report published on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. Scotiabank currently has a $51.00 price objective on the pipeline company's stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on WMB. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Williams Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $52.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. CIBC boosted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on 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 given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $53.00.

Williams Companies Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WMB traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $55.61. 6,336,321 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,993,953. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.51. Williams Companies has a 1 year low of $32.65 and a 1 year high of $60.36. The company has a market capitalization of $67.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.46, a PEG ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 1.06. The company's 50-day moving average is $55.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.17.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 analysts' expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Williams Companies will post 1.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued 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 yield of 3.42%. Williams Companies's payout ratio is 80.17%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total transaction of $447,641.30. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,858 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,455,805.40. This trade represents a 23.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Williams Companies

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its holdings in Williams Companies by 50.4% during the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 752 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the second quarter worth $35,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.44% of the company's stock.

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.