Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Sets New 52-Week High Following Analyst Upgrade

The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $55.00 to $70.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Williams Companies traded as high as $57.83 and last traded at $57.65, with a volume of 2036739 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $56.55.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on WMB. Barclays raised their price target on Williams Companies from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $42.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America started coverage on Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $55.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. One equities 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.54.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 304,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,777,218. This trade represents a 0.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total transaction of $447,641.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,858 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,455,805.40. The trade was a 23.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WMB. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. SouthState Corp bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 752 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the second quarter worth about $35,000. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Williams Companies Trading Up 2.3 %

The stock has a market cap of $70.53 billion, a PE ratio of 23.86, a PEG ratio of 5.83 and a beta of 1.03. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $49.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $45.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.28%. Williams Companies's payout ratio is 80.17%.

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.