The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Stock Holdings Increased by Guardian Capital LP

Guardian Capital LP grew its holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 1.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 680,667 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,319 shares during the quarter. Williams Companies makes up approximately 1.4% of Guardian Capital LP's portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Guardian Capital LP owned 0.06% of Williams Companies worth $36,838,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of WMB. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Sandy Spring Bank purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. 86.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Chad A. Teply sold 26,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.46, for a total value of $1,467,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 133,048 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,511,890.08. This represents a 16.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Micheal G. Dunn sold 96,687 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.04, for a total value of $5,128,278.48. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 714,693 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,907,316.72. This trade represents a 11.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 139,583 shares of company stock valued at $7,563,278. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Williams Companies Stock Up 2.1 %

NYSE WMB traded up $1.21 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $60.01. The company had a trading volume of 4,560,879 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,616,731. The firm's 50 day moving average is $57.77 and its 200 day moving average is $56.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $38.43 and a fifty-two week high of $61.67. The company has a market capitalization of $73.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.79, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.87.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 21.17%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 109.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Williams Companies from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. Barclays lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.77.

Williams Companies Company 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.