ELCO Management Co. LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

ELCO Management Co. LLC raised its stake in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 186,516 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,459 shares during the period. Williams Companies makes up about 6.1% of ELCO Management Co. LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. ELCO Management Co. LLC’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $11,715,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of WMB. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 40.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 13,680 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $740,000 after acquiring an additional 3,969 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 26.8% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 147,237 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $8,715,000 after acquiring an additional 31,127 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 52.4% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 326,236 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $19,760,000 after acquiring an additional 112,157 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 9.4% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,788 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $286,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the period. Finally, Sovran Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 18.0% during the first quarter. Sovran Advisors LLC now owns 7,292 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111 shares during the period. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Thursday, August 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $63.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $59.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Friday, September 19th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $66.00 target price on the stock. Finally, CIBC raised shares of Williams Companies from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $64.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, August 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were 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. This trade represents a 0.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Larry C. Larsen sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at approximately $4,537,973.64. The trade was a 5.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 8,500 shares of company stock worth $497,715 over the last three months. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WMB opened at $57.58 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1 year low of $51.46 and a 1 year high of $65.55.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion during 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 last year, the business earned $0.43 earnings per share. Williams Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.010-2.190 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 100.50%.

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.