Metis Global Partners LLC Purchases 19,635 Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 17.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 133,409 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,635 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $7,220,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Up 3.5 %

Shares of WMB opened at $58.25 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.50. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $35.38 and a one year high of $61.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.83, a PEG ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $56.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.66.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 21.17%. Equities research analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. This is an increase from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 109.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WMB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.21.

Insider Activity

In other news, 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 value of $1,467,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 133,048 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,511,890.08. This trade represents a 16.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

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.