Ethic Inc. Has $3.80 Million Holdings in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

Key Points

• Ethic Inc. has reduced its holdings in Williams Companies, Inc. by 6.8%, bringing their total shares to 60,562 with a value of approximately $3.8 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in Williams Companies, including Adams Natural Resources Fund, which raised its position by 1,238.3% to own 365,350 shares.
• Analysts show a mixed sentiment about Williams Companies, with Wells Fargo setting a new price target of $70.00 while others have downgraded their ratings, resulting in an average target of $66.73.

Ethic Inc. decreased its position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 60,562 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 4,389 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $3,795,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dudley Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Williams Companies by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dudley Capital Management LLC now owns 43,838 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $2,753,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Williams Companies by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC now owns 32,313 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $2,030,000 after buying an additional 578 shares during the last quarter. Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. increased its stake in Williams Companies by 1,238.3% in the 2nd quarter. Adams Natural Resources Fund Inc. now owns 365,350 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $22,948,000 after buying an additional 338,050 shares during the last quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Williams Companies by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69,219 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $4,348,000 after buying an additional 1,101 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Williams Companies by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Private Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 251,783 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $15,814,000 after buying an additional 2,407 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. CIBC upgraded shares of Williams Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and set a $64.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, August 15th. Argus restated a "buy" rating and set a $66.00 price target on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Williams Companies from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Friday, September 19th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $66.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $66.73.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In related news, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.47, for a total value of $263,115.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,612 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,537,973.64. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.62, for a total transaction of $115,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 311,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,956,984.90. This trade represents a 0.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 8,500 shares of company stock valued at $497,715. 0.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Williams Companies Trading Down 5.3%

Shares of WMB stock opened at $58.88 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $60.26 and a 200-day moving average of $59.29. 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 $51.46 and a 12-month high of $65.55. The firm has a market cap of $71.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.59, a PEG ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.65.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 21.63%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.43 earnings per share. Williams Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.010-2.190 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Williams Companies, Inc. 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, September 29th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 12th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.

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