The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Stock Holdings Boosted by Golden State Equity Partners

Golden State Equity Partners boosted its stake in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 319.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 12,038 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,171 shares during the quarter. Golden State Equity Partners’ holdings in Williams Companies were worth $651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in Williams Companies by 50.4% in the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 752 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In related news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total value of $447,641.30. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,858 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,455,805.40. This represents a 23.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WMB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, CIBC upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $53.00.

Williams Companies Price Performance

WMB stock opened at $55.43 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $56.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.57 billion, a PE ratio of 23.39, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.05. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $32.65 and a one year high of $61.46.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 15.89%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. This is a positive change from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 80.17%.

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.