Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Sets New 52-Week High After Strong Earnings

The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $39.99 and last traded at $39.89, with a volume of 966804 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $39.06.

The pipeline company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.10. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.40% and a net margin of 27.29%. The business had revenue of $2.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.69 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.56 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 10.1% on a year-over-year basis.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 24th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is currently 79.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WMB shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. CIBC upped their target price on Williams Companies from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 25th. US Capital Advisors lowered Williams Companies from an “overweight” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $39.55.

Institutional Trading of Williams Companies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WMB. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the first quarter worth $27,000. Carmel Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Fairman Group LLC acquired a new position in Williams Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $38.01 and a 200-day moving average of $36.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.91 billion, a PE ratio of 16.52, a P/E/G ratio of 6.13 and a beta of 1.05.

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.