Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $65.18 Million Position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB)

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Williams Companies by 1.9%, now holding over 1 million shares, making it the fund's 8th largest position.
• Williams Companies reported a quarterly earnings miss with an EPS of $0.46, below estimates, while also announcing a dividend of $0.50 to be paid on September 29th.
• Analysts have varied opinions on WMB, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and price targets ranging from $60 to $67 per share.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 1.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,090,692 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 20,181 shares during the period. Williams Companies accounts for approximately 1.6% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned 0.09% of Williams Companies worth $65,180,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Menard Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new position in Williams Companies during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 4,490.9% in the first quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 505 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Abound Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the first quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

Williams Companies Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of Williams Companies stock traded up $0.60 during trading on Monday, hitting $58.49. 1,560,487 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,781,062. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $59.32 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $58.25. Williams Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $42.79 and a twelve month high of $63.45. The stock has a market cap of $71.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.40, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.54.

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

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 12th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on WMB. Scotiabank increased their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Williams Companies from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. One investment 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, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies

In other news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of Williams Companies 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 313,645 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,718,333.60. This trade represents a 0.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

About Williams Companies

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.