IFP Advisors Inc Grows Position in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 35.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,181 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,885 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $389,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams Companies Price Performance

WMB stock opened at $58.25 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $71.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.83, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.04. The business’s 50-day moving average is $56.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $52.73. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $35.38 and a 1 year high of $61.46.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its quarterly 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%. Analysts anticipate that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 109.29%.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other news, SVP Chad A. Teply sold 26,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.46, for a total transaction of $1,467,960.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 133,048 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,511,890.08. This trade represents a 16.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup increased 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 target price on Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.21.

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.