Trust Co. of Vermont Decreases Stock Holdings in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

Trust Co. of Vermont cut its stake in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 9.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,914 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of WMB. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Williams Companies by 40.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 13,680 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 3,969 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its position in Williams Companies by 48.8% during the first quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 787 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 5.9% in the first quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 4,282 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Channel Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 1st quarter worth approximately $211,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in shares of Williams Companies by 21.4% during the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 34,232 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $2,046,000 after purchasing an additional 6,025 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Shares of WMB stock opened at $64.09 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $78.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.65. Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $47.52 and a one year high of $65.55. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $59.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.93.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The pipeline company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.49 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.90 billion. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 19.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.43 earnings per share. Williams Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.010-2.190 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 12th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 12th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 100.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Williams Companies from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $74.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Friday, September 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $66.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price objective for the company. Finally, CIBC upgraded Williams Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, August 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.53.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.62, for a total value of $115,240.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 311,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,956,984.90. The trade was a 0.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.47, for a total transaction of $263,115.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 77,612 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,537,973.64. This trade represents a 5.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,500 shares of company stock worth $497,715. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

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.