The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Stock Position Trimmed by Signature Wealth Management Group

Signature Wealth Management Group cut its position in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 1.2% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 84,666 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 1,024 shares during the period. Williams Companies makes up approximately 2.0% of Signature Wealth Management Group’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Signature Wealth Management Group’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $5,060,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Menard Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Sandy Spring Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new position in Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on WMB shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, CIBC boosted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $61.25.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:WMB opened at $59.74 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $72.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.65, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.65. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.41 and a twelve month high of $61.67. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $58.70 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.36. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 15.85%. The company had revenue of $3.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. Williams Companies’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 106.95%.

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.