Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. raised its position in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 268.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 217,708 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after purchasing an additional 158,640 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $13,010,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 1.2% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 577,123 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,489,000 after buying an additional 6,816 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 27.5% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 402,967 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $24,081,000 after buying an additional 87,031 shares during the period. Kessler Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the first quarter worth about $327,000. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 14.0% in the first quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 85,839 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $5,130,000 after buying an additional 10,561 shares during the period. Finally, Good Steward Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the first quarter worth about $977,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Williams Companies stock opened at $57.84 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market cap of $70.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.07, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 0.66. Williams Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $42.82 and a fifty-two week high of $63.45.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The business’s revenue was up 19.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is presently 100.50%.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other news, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.47, for a total value of $263,115.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,537,973.64. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.68, for a total value of $119,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 313,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,718,333.60. This represents a 0.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 8,500 shares of company stock worth $507,875. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on WMB shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Williams Companies from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. TD Cowen started coverage on Williams Companies in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Williams Companies from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Williams Companies from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $63.00 price target on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.00.

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.