Guinness Asset Management LTD Invests $6.63 Million in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

Key Points

• Guinness Asset Management LTD opened a new position in Williams Companies, buying 110,943 shares worth about $6.63 million in the fourth quarter.
• Williams Companies reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.73 per share, though revenue came in below estimates; the company also reaffirmed FY 2026 EPS guidance of 2.20 to 2.38.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive, with analysts assigning an average Buy rating and a consensus price target of $81, while the stock recently traded near its 52-week high at $78.41.

Guinness Asset Management LTD bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 110,943 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $6,634,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WMB. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 13,680 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 3,969 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 5.5% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,635 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $291,000 after buying an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 2.1% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 568,928 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $35,734,000 after buying an additional 11,926 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 3.0% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 10,248 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 160.1% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 165,035 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $10,366,000 after buying an additional 101,574 shares in the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Williams Companies in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $84.00 price target for the company. Scotiabank upped 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. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on Williams Companies from $82.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Williams Companies from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $82.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Williams Companies from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $81.00.

Williams Companies Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:WMB opened at $78.41 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $95.78 billion, a PE ratio of 34.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $73.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $67.45. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.82 and a 1 year high of $80.07.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.28 billion. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 18.34% and a net margin of 23.39%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. Analysts forecast that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio is 92.11%.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Todd J. Rinke sold 7,364 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.39, for a total value of $547,807.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 26,055 shares in the company, valued at $1,938,231.45. This represents a 22.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 27,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.92, for a total value of $1,968,840.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 293,159 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,377,154.28. This trade represents a 8.43% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 117,869 shares of company stock worth $8,814,067. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

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.

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