Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on WMB. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Williams Companies from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered Williams Companies from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.21.

Williams Companies Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:WMB opened at $60.41 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $59.84 and its 200-day moving average is $59.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.42. Williams Companies has a 52 week low of $51.58 and a 52 week high of $65.55. The company has a market capitalization of $73.77 billion, a PE ratio of 31.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.64.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pipeline company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.51 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.87 billion. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.74% and a net margin of 20.61%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.43 EPS. Williams Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.010-2.190 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Williams Companies will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 4,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.53, for a total value of $242,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 302,645 shares in the company, valued at $18,319,101.85. This trade represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in Williams Companies by 40.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 13,680 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $740,000 after buying an additional 3,969 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 11,918 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $712,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 327.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 133,704 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $7,990,000 after acquiring an additional 102,411 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 102,987 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $6,155,000 after purchasing an additional 29,780 shares during the period. Finally, SCS Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 1st quarter worth $564,000. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Williams Companies

Williams Companies, Inc (NYSE: WMB) is a U.S.-based energy infrastructure company focused on the midstream segment of the natural gas value chain. The company develops, owns and operates assets that gather, process, transport and store natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs). Its operations support the movement of gas from production areas to end users including utilities, power generators, industrial customers and export facilities.

Williams’s product and service offering includes interstate and intrastate pipeline transmission, gas-gathering systems, processing facilities that remove impurities and separate NGLs, storage services and fractionation and transportation of NGL products.