ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. Buys New Stake in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB)

Key Points

• ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired 355,119 shares of Williams Companies, Inc. for approximately $21.2 million, highlighting strong institutional interest in the pipeline company.
• Williams Companies recently reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing estimates, along with a revenue of $2.78 billion, which was below consensus expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, with a payout ratio of 106.95%, suggesting a commitment to shareholder returns despite financial pressures.

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new stake in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 355,119 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $21,221,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of WMB. Blackstone Inc. lifted its holdings in Williams Companies by 36.5% in the fourth quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 18,954,088 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,025,795,000 after acquiring an additional 5,068,738 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in Williams Companies by 45.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 11,339,078 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $677,623,000 after purchasing an additional 3,519,370 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 2,303.2% in the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,517,336 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $190,358,000 after purchasing an additional 3,370,974 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 6,407.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,238,490 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $133,772,000 after purchasing an additional 2,204,090 shares during the period. Finally, Castle Hook Partners LP increased its position in shares of Williams Companies by 69.1% during the 4th quarter. Castle Hook Partners LP now owns 5,055,184 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $273,587,000 after purchasing an additional 2,065,906 shares during the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on WMB shares. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wolfe Research raised Williams Companies from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on Williams Companies in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $61.77.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.68, for a total value of $119,360.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 313,645 shares in the company, valued at $18,718,333.60. This trade represents a 0.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Williams Companies Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE WMB traded down $0.75 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $57.89. 7,541,097 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,024,555. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. The firm has a market cap of $70.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.09, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50 day moving average of $59.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $58.29. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $42.79 and a 52-week high of $63.45.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.03). Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 21.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Williams Companies's payout ratio is presently 100.50%.

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.