Candriam S.C.A. Trims Stock Holdings in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

Candriam S.C.A. lessened its holdings in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 2.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 126,899 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 3,299 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $7,971,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter worth $29,000. Private Wealth Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 104.8% in the second quarter. Private Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 469 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank bought a new position in Williams Companies during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp bought a new position in Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams Companies Price Performance

WMB opened at $60.93 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $60.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $59.45. Williams Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $51.58 and a fifty-two week high of $65.55. The firm has a market cap of $74.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 0.63.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The pipeline company reported $0.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.87 billion. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.63% and a return on equity of 16.23%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. Williams Companies has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.010-2.190 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 103.09%.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.53, for a total value of $242,120.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 302,645 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,319,101.85. This trade represents a 1.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WMB shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Williams Companies from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 4th. Barclays upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. CIBC raised 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Williams Companies from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $68.21.

Williams Companies 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.