Values First Advisors Inc. Has $677,000 Holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Values First Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 36.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,509 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,311 shares during the period. Values First Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $677,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the third quarter worth $30,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Williams Companies stock opened at $54.83 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The stock has a market cap of $66.84 billion, a PE ratio of 23.14, a P/E/G ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 1.04. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.65 and a 12-month high of $61.46. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $55.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.49.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 15.89%. As a group, analysts expect that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.65%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 80.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on WMB. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. CIBC increased their price target on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $51.00 price objective on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Williams Companies from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $53.00.

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.