Erste Asset Management GmbH Sells 85,038 Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Erste Asset Management GmbH decreased its position in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 58.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 60,000 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 85,038 shares during the period. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $3,237,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vestcor Inc grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 54,898 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $2,971,000 after buying an additional 6,076 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 59.1% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 665 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 247 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 47,714 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $2,582,000 after buying an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. SHEPHERD WEALTH MANAGEMENT Ltd LIABILITY Co purchased a new stake in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 10.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,961 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 848 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Up 2.0 %

NYSE WMB opened at $57.33 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The company has a fifty day moving average of $56.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $53.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.33, a PEG ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.03. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $36.69 and a 52 week high of $61.46.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 15.85%. On average, analysts predict that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. This is an increase from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 109.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on WMB shares. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. CIBC raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.07.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 8,896 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.50, for a total transaction of $511,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 22,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,284,492.50. This trade represents a 28.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Larry C. Larsen sold 8,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total value of $455,520.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 81,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,627,229.10. This trade represents a 8.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 139,583 shares of company stock worth $7,563,278. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.