Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB Shares Sold by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in Williams Companies, Inc. by 9.4%, owning 408,982 shares worth approximately $24.4 million after selling 42,434 shares in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including Iron Horse Wealth Management and Abound Financial, recently acquired positions in Williams Companies, with 86.44% of the stock held by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Williams Companies reported a quarterly earnings miss, with earnings per share of $0.46 versus estimates of $0.49, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50, scheduled for payment on September 29th.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 9.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 408,982 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 42,434 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Williams Companies were worth $24,441,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMB. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 11.4% during the first quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 23,954 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,432,000 after buying an additional 2,452 shares during the last quarter. Ethic Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 8.9% in the first quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 64,951 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $3,934,000 after purchasing an additional 5,312 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 27.6% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,434 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $683,000 after purchasing an additional 2,473 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 33.4% in the first quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 702,210 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $41,964,000 after purchasing an additional 175,830 shares during the period. Finally, Aberdeen Group plc boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 21.8% in the first quarter. Aberdeen Group plc now owns 1,833,550 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $108,702,000 after purchasing an additional 328,700 shares during the period. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Williams Companies Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of WMB traded down $0.92 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $56.54. 5,812,796 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,021,415. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $43.96 and a 1 year high of $63.45. The firm's fifty day moving average is $58.95 and its 200-day moving average is $58.31. 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 has a market capitalization of $68.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.66.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The business had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.43 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, 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 will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 100.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 313,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,718,333.60. This represents a 0.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 8,500 shares of company stock valued at $507,875. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WMB shares. TD Cowen started coverage on Williams Companies in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Williams Companies from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays boosted their price target on Williams Companies from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. Argus restated a "buy" rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Williams Companies from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.86.

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.