Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) Shares Sold by HighTower Advisors LLC

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Williams Companies by 38.6%, selling 734,301 shares, and now owns 1,167,213 shares valued at approximately $69.8 million.
• Insider activity includes COO Larry C. Larsen selling 4,500 shares at an average price of $58.47, resulting in a 5.48% decrease in his position.
• Williams Companies reported a net margin of 21.63% for the last quarter, with earnings per share (EPS) of $0.46, falling short of the expected $0.49 EPS.

HighTower Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 38.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,167,213 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 734,301 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC owned about 0.10% of Williams Companies worth $69,753,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Menard Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 4,490.9% during the first quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 505 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 494 shares during the period. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the first quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the first quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 313,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,718,333.60. The trade was a 0.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the business'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 $4,537,973.64. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 8,500 shares of company stock valued at $507,875 over the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on WMB shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Williams Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $63.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Wolfe Research upgraded Williams Companies from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Argus reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $66.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.36.

Williams Companies Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of WMB stock traded down $0.48 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $57.38. 9,163,464 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,941,327. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.45 and a 1 year high of $63.45. The stock has a market cap of $69.96 billion, a PE ratio of 28.83, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $59.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.26.

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

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

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

Williams Companies 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.