Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Reaches New 52-Week High at $46.82

The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $46.82 and last traded at $46.82, with a volume of 1499 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $46.36.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on WMB. Argus upgraded Williams Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 20th. Barclays upped their target price on Williams Companies from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, August 19th. Scotiabank raised their price target 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. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Williams Companies from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $51.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $43.50.

Williams Companies Trading Up 1.0 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $44.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a market capitalization of $57.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.48, a P/E/G ratio of 6.20 and a beta of 1.05.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.17% and a net margin of 27.11%. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.46 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.06%. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is 79.83%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Williams Companies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMB. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the first quarter worth about $27,000. Fairman Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. SouthState Corp purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the second quarter worth $31,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the second quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.