The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) is Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s 8th Largest Position

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 10.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 380,600 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 42,745 shares during the period. Williams Companies makes up about 3.0% of Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $20,598,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WMB. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Sandy Spring Bank acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of Williams Companies stock opened at $59.37 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.39 billion, a PE ratio of 32.44, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.03. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.18 and a twelve month high of $61.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $56.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $53.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 15.85%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS 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. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. 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. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.37%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 109.29%.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Larry C. Larsen sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total value of $455,520.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 81,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,627,229.10. This trade represents a 8.96 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Chad A. Teply sold 26,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 133,048 shares in the company, valued at $7,511,890.08. This trade represents a 16.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 139,583 shares of company stock valued at $7,563,278. 0.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on WMB shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Citigroup increased their price target on Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Truist Financial increased their price target on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One research 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.07.

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.