Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $172.65 Million Stock Position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management raised its stake in Williams by 4.8% to 2,837,258 shares worth $172.65 million, about 0.23% of the company.
• Q1 EPS beat — Williams reported $0.73 EPS vs. $0.63 expected but missed revenue ($3.03B vs. ~ $3.27B) and provided FY2026 guidance of $2.20–$2.38 amid several analyst price‑target hikes and an overall "Buy" consensus (avg PT $78.93).
• Dividend increase — the board approved a 5% raise to the quarterly payout to $0.525 ($2.10 annualized, ~2.8% yield) while the payout ratio remains elevated (~92%) and insiders have recently sold shares.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 4.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,837,258 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 130,335 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.23% of Williams Companies worth $172,647,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMB. Towne Trust Company N.A increased its position in Williams Companies by 60.2% during the fourth quarter. Towne Trust Company N.A now owns 431 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 99.7% in the 2nd quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 767 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Accordant Advisory Group Inc lifted its holdings in Williams Companies by 324.7% in the 4th quarter. Accordant Advisory Group Inc now owns 807 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 617 shares during the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMB has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Williams Companies from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Williams Companies from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $84.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $78.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $78.93.

Key Headlines Impacting Williams Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting Williams Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 EPS beat — Williams reported $0.73 EPS, topping estimates and showing cash‑generation strength, which supports the dividend and buyback optionality. WMB Beats Q1 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Structural demand tailwinds — Multiple recent pieces highlight rising natural‑gas demand from AI data centers, power markets and LNG, which underpin Williams’s long‑term fee‑based cash flows and project backlog. Williams Eyes 13% Upside on AI Data Center Boom
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend & project execution — Board approved a 5% raise to the quarterly payout and management has placed new pipeline capacity into service, reducing volume risk and supporting steady distributable cash flow. How Williams Is Cashing in on the AI Power Boom
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst upgrades/price‑target lifts — Firms including Stifel and others have raised targets (Stifel to $83) and reiterated buy ratings, supporting sentiment but not introducing new company fundamentals. Benzinga (Stifel note)
• Neutral Sentiment: FY2026 guidance provided — Management set EPS guidance of $2.20–$2.38; the range overlaps consensus and leaves room for debate on FY momentum, so investors are parsing the midpoint vs. sell‑side models. Q1 2026 Press Release & Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue miss — Q1 revenue came in below consensus ($3.03B vs. ~$3.27B), which tempers the EPS beat and raises questions about near‑term volume trends. Williams Q1 Revenue vs Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options/insider activity — Elevated put buying and a small SVP sale have drawn attention and likely contributed to short‑term volatility, even though the insider transaction was modest in size. Insider Sale Filing

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.35, for a total transaction of $152,700.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 287,159 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,924,589.65. This trade represents a 0.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 10,107 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.91, for a total value of $757,115.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 17,230 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,290,699.30. This trade represents a 36.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 53,369 shares of company stock valued at $3,932,432 in the last ninety days. 0.47% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams Companies Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of Williams Companies stock opened at $73.86 on Thursday. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.82 and a 1 year high of $77.41. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $73.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.08. The company has a market cap of $90.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.39, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.10. Williams Companies had a net margin of 23.39% and a return on equity of 18.34%. The firm had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Investors of record on Friday, June 12th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 12th. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 92.11%.

Williams Companies Profile

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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