The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Shares Sold by Centre Asset Management LLC

Centre Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 27,890 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 275 shares during the quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $1,509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. TIAA Trust National Association acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the second quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its position in Williams Companies by 0.7% during the second quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 104,674 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $4,449,000 after buying an additional 720 shares in the last quarter. First National Trust Co lifted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 10.4% in the 2nd quarter. First National Trust Co now owns 11,619 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $494,000 after acquiring an additional 1,099 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Williams Companies by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 126,985 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $5,397,000 after purchasing an additional 9,381 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FineMark National Bank & Trust increased its holdings in Williams Companies by 76.0% in the 2nd quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust now owns 12,433 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $528,000 after purchasing an additional 5,368 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

WMB traded up $0.93 during trading on Friday, hitting $56.81. The stock had a trading volume of 706,790 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,229,655. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.97, a PEG ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.57. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.65 and a twelve month high of $60.36. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $55.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.58.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last issued 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 for 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 business’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Insider Activity

In other Williams Companies news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,455,805.40. This trade represents a 23.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on WMB shares. CIBC raised 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. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Mizuho lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, 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. One research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.07.

About Williams Companies

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.