EntryPoint Capital LLC Takes $271,000 Position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

Key Points

• EntryPoint Capital LLC has acquired 4,534 shares of Williams Companies, valued at approximately $271,000, highlighting increased institutional interest in the pipeline company.
• The COO of Williams Companies, Larry C. Larsen, recently sold 4,500 shares, representing a 5.48% decrease in his ownership, amidst reports of insider trading activity.
• Analysts have mixed ratings on Williams Companies, with one downgrade to "sell" and others maintaining "buy" ratings, while the stock has a current consensus target price of $62.86.

EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,534 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $271,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in Williams Companies by 1.2% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 577,123 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $34,489,000 after purchasing an additional 6,816 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Williams Companies by 27.5% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 402,967 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $24,081,000 after purchasing an additional 87,031 shares during the last quarter. Kessler Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies in the first quarter worth $327,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Williams Companies by 14.0% in the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 85,839 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $5,130,000 after purchasing an additional 10,561 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Good Steward Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies in the first quarter worth $977,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on WMB. Wall Street Zen cut Williams Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Scotiabank upped their price target on Williams Companies from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays upped their price target on Williams Companies from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Williams Companies in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Williams Companies from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $62.86.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMB traded up $0.38 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $57.51. 3,288,341 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,670,714. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $43.98 and a 12 month high of $63.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.66. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $58.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.34.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.03). Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The company had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Williams Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.010-2.190 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.47, for a total value of $263,115.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,612 shares in the company, valued at $4,537,973.64. This represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.68, for a total value of $119,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 313,645 shares in the company, valued at $18,718,333.60. This represents a 0.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 8,500 shares of company stock worth $507,875 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Williams Companies Company Profile

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.