Williams Companies Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:WMB)

Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Investors bought 11,087 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 63% compared to the average volume of 6,809 put options.

Williams Companies Trading Up 0.4%

NYSE:WMB opened at $59.78 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $73.00 billion, a PE ratio of 30.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $59.66 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $59.63. Williams Companies has a 12 month low of $51.58 and a 12 month high of $65.55.

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

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 12th. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 103.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.90, for a total value of $123,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 297,545 shares in the company, valued at $18,418,035.50. This trade represents a 0.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Williams Companies

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Flaharty Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Saudi Central Bank bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC raised its stake in Williams Companies by 104.8% during the 2nd quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 469 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the period. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Tudor Pickering upgraded Williams Companies from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Williams Companies from $70.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Mizuho raised Williams Companies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.21.

Williams Companies Company Profile

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.