Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB Stock Position Lessened by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Key Points

• Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its Williams Companies position by 26.2% in the first quarter, selling 20,040 shares and retaining 56,425 shares worth approximately $4.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 86.44% of WMB.
• Williams reported quarterly EPS of $0.73, beating estimates of $0.63, while revenue of $3.03 billion fell short of the $3.28 billion consensus and declined slightly year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, or $2.10 annually, representing a yield near 3%; analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $83.56, above the reported share price.

Kentucky Retirement Systems trimmed its holdings in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 26.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 56,425 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 20,040 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems' holdings in Williams Companies were worth $4,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 40.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 13,680 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $740,000 after buying an additional 3,969 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 5.5% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,635 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina increased its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 2.1% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 568,928 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $35,734,000 after acquiring an additional 11,926 shares during the period. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 3.0% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 10,248 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $644,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ieq Capital LLC raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 160.1% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 165,035 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $10,366,000 after purchasing an additional 101,574 shares in the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Williams Companies News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend supports income appeal: Williams declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, equivalent to approximately $2.10 annually and a yield near 3%. The dividend is payable September 28 to shareholders of record September 11. Williams Companies dividend announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst price target remains above the market: Analysts set an average price target of $83.56, implying potential upside and signaling continued confidence in the pipeline operator’s earnings and cash-flow profile. Analysts set Williams Companies price target
• Positive Sentiment: Energy infrastructure demand and sustainability progress: Williams’ 2025 Sustainability Report highlighted improvements in environmental, safety and operational metrics. Management also pointed to rapidly rising energy demand, which could support long-term utilization of the company’s natural-gas pipeline infrastructure. Williams sustainability report
• Neutral Sentiment: Second-quarter expectations remain the key near-term catalyst: Wall Street projections focus on revenue, earnings and operating metrics for the quarter ended June 2026. The reports provide estimates but no reported results, leaving the upcoming earnings release as the main test of whether demand growth is translating into financial performance. Williams Q2 Wall Street projections
• Negative Sentiment: Estimates were trimmed: US Capital Advisors lowered its EPS forecasts for the third quarter of 2026, first and second quarters of 2027, and fiscal 2028. The FY2028 estimate fell to $2.86 from $2.89, a modest reduction that nevertheless signals slightly softer expected earnings growth. Williams Companies analyst estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Defensive options activity increased: Investors purchased 17,796 put options, 86% above average volume. While this may represent hedging rather than outright bearish positioning, it indicates heightened near-term caution around WMB.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Shares of WMB opened at $70.97 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $73.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.17. The stock has a market cap of $86.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.13, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $55.82 and a one year high of $80.07.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.28 billion. Williams Companies had a net margin of 23.39% and a return on equity of 18.34%. The firm's revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Williams Companies's payout ratio is 92.11%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Williams Companies from $87.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $82.00 price objective on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Barclays upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $78.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce boosted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "outperformer" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Williams Companies presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $83.56.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO John Dean Porter sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.37, for a total value of $3,768,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 196,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,815,254.79. This trade represents a 20.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.48, for a total value of $917,760.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 98,219 shares in the company, valued at $7,511,789.12. The trade was a 10.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 66,500 shares of company stock worth $5,029,955 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company's stock.

Williams Companies Company 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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