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

Sagefield Capital LP lifted its position in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 58.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 387,583 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 142,357 shares during the period. Williams Companies comprises about 2.3% of Sagefield Capital LP's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest position. Sagefield Capital LP's holdings in Williams Companies were worth $20,976,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 5,568 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $300,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 17,889 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $968,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the period. Albion Financial Group UT raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 1,184 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Sprinkle Financial Consultants LLC lifted its position in Williams Companies by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Sprinkle Financial Consultants LLC now owns 5,073 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, AMG National Trust Bank boosted its holdings in Williams Companies by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 30,813 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $1,669,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams Companies Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:WMB traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $57.97. 2,220,337 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,612,619. The firm has a market cap of $70.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.67, a PEG ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $58.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $57.00. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.88 and a 52-week high of $61.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.55 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 21.17%. The business had revenue of $3.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.95%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on WMB shares. Truist Financial increased their target price on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup upped their price target on Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, CIBC lifted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.50.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Larry C. Larsen sold 8,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total transaction of $455,520.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 81,265 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,627,229.10. The trade was a 8.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Micheal G. Dunn sold 96,687 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.04, for a total transaction of $5,128,278.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 714,693 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,907,316.72. The trade was a 11.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 139,583 shares of company stock worth $7,563,278. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

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.