Mizuho Securities USA LLC Has $5.83 Million Stock Holdings in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB)

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC reduced its stake in Williams Companies by 15.5%, owning 97,605 shares valued at approximately $5.83 million after selling 17,930 shares in the first quarter.
• The company reported $0.46 EPS for the last quarter, missing estimates, with revenue of $2.78 billion, which was below the anticipated $2.90 billion.
• Williams Companies declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, scheduled for payment on September 29, with a yield of 3.5%.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC trimmed its position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 15.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 97,605 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 17,930 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Williams Companies were worth $5,833,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WMB. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 40.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 13,680 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $740,000 after acquiring an additional 3,969 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,138,814 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $169,873,000 after buying an additional 488,322 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 85.2% during the 4th quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 40,338 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $2,183,000 after buying an additional 18,555 shares during the period. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $218,000. Finally, Heritage Trust Co acquired a new stake in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $532,000. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

NYSE WMB opened at $57.89 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $59.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.26. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $42.79 and a 1 year high of $63.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.66.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.03). Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.23% and a net margin of 21.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.68, for a total transaction of $119,360.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 313,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,718,333.60. This represents a 0.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on WMB shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Williams Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Williams Companies from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Friday, June 13th. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $62.00.

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.

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