Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.02 EPS

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) released its earnings results on Tuesday. The pipeline company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.02), Briefing.com reports. Williams Companies had a net margin of 20.61% and a return on equity of 16.74%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.47 EPS. Williams Companies updated its FY 2026 guidance to 2.200-2.380 EPS.

Williams Companies Price Performance

WMB traded up $1.75 on Tuesday, hitting $69.60. 3,867,231 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,727,333. 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’s 50 day simple moving average is $61.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.47. Williams Companies has a one year low of $51.58 and a one year high of $71.58. The firm has a market cap of $85.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.65.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a boost from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 103.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on WMB shares. Zacks Research upgraded Williams Companies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Mizuho raised Williams Companies to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.53, for a total value of $242,120.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 302,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,319,101.85. The trade was a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 8,000 shares of company stock worth $498,700 over the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Williams Companies

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Williams Companies by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,635 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $291,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. ICONIQ Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Williams Companies by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. ICONIQ Capital LLC now owns 9,858 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $619,000 after buying an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 0.8% in the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 37,382 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,368,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC increased its position in Williams Companies by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 10,248 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $644,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Visionary Wealth Advisors boosted its stake in Williams Companies by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 14,246 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $895,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.