Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 12.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 131,590 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,024 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors' holdings in Williams Companies were worth $9,577,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.
Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WMB. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 133,963,343 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $8,052,537,000 after acquiring an additional 883,245 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 67,981,106 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $4,086,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,296,991 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 46,053,873 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $2,768,298,000 after purchasing an additional 2,100,164 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 33,572,067 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $2,018,017,000 after purchasing an additional 3,314,851 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in Williams Companies by 21.3% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 21,325,482 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $1,281,875,000 after purchasing an additional 3,748,126 shares during the period. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Williams Companies Trading Up 1.2%
Shares of Williams Companies stock opened at $70.97 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.70 billion, a PE ratio of 31.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.57. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $55.82 and a 52 week high of $80.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $73.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.83.
Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.10. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 18.34% and a net margin of 23.39%.The company had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.60 earnings per share. Williams Companies's revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Williams Companies Announces Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 92.11%.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of brokerages have weighed in on WMB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $88.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 1st. Scotiabank increased their price target on Williams Companies from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperformer" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $87.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $83.56.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Williams Companies
Key Williams Companies News
Here are the key news stories impacting Williams Companies this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Dividend supports income appeal: Williams declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, equivalent to approximately $2.10 annually and a yield near 3%. The dividend is payable September 28 to shareholders of record September 11. Williams Companies dividend announcement
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst price target remains above the market: Analysts set an average price target of $83.56, implying potential upside and signaling continued confidence in the pipeline operator’s earnings and cash-flow profile. Analysts set Williams Companies price target
- Positive Sentiment: Energy infrastructure demand and sustainability progress: Williams’ 2025 Sustainability Report highlighted improvements in environmental, safety and operational metrics. Management also pointed to rapidly rising energy demand, which could support long-term utilization of the company’s natural-gas pipeline infrastructure. Williams sustainability report
- Neutral Sentiment: Second-quarter expectations remain the key near-term catalyst: Wall Street projections focus on revenue, earnings and operating metrics for the quarter ended June 2026. The reports provide estimates but no reported results, leaving the upcoming earnings release as the main test of whether demand growth is translating into financial performance. Williams Q2 Wall Street projections
- Negative Sentiment: Estimates were trimmed: US Capital Advisors lowered its EPS forecasts for the third quarter of 2026, first and second quarters of 2027, and fiscal 2028. The FY2028 estimate fell to $2.86 from $2.89, a modest reduction that nevertheless signals slightly softer expected earnings growth. Williams Companies analyst estimates
- Negative Sentiment: Defensive options activity increased: Investors purchased 17,796 put options, 86% above average volume. While this may represent hedging rather than outright bearish positioning, it indicates heightened near-term caution around WMB.
Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies
In related news, SVP Glen G. Jasek sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.15, for a total value of $195,375.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 54,101 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,227,993.15. This trade represents a 4.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.16, for a total value of $148,320.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 283,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,999,071.44. The trade was a 0.70% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 66,500 shares of company stock valued at $5,029,955 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.
Williams Companies Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
Further Reading

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