Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Given New $55.00 Price Target at The Goldman Sachs Group

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) had its target price lifted by The Goldman Sachs Group from $45.00 to $55.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

WMB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America began coverage on Williams Companies in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on Williams Companies from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com cut Williams Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn lowered Williams Companies from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.79.

Williams Companies Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:WMB opened at $58.14 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.17. Williams Companies has a 12-month low of $32.65 and a 12-month high of $60.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.53, a PEG ratio of 6.01 and a beta of 1.03.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its quarterly 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 return on equity of 15.89% and a net margin of 27.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. Williams Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Williams Companies will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.17%.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.29, for a total value of $90,580.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 304,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,777,218. The trade was a 0.65 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,455,805.40. This trade represents a 23.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams Companies

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Comerica Bank increased its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 517,312 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $20,160,000 after buying an additional 10,579 shares during the last quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Williams Companies by 60.9% during the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 1,398 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the period. iA Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Williams Companies by 454.3% during the first quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 52,947 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,063,000 after buying an additional 43,395 shares during the period. Lummis Asset Management LP increased its position in Williams Companies by 126.1% during the first quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 14,143 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $551,000 after acquiring an additional 7,887 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 5.3% during the first quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. now owns 32,416 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,263,000 after buying an additional 1,646 shares during the period. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.