The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Shares Purchased by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 99.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 206,861 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after buying an additional 103,221 shares during the quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $11,195,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 50.4% in the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 752 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Williams Companies in the second quarter worth $35,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Williams Companies in the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:WMB opened at $59.64 on Friday. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.65 and a 12-month high of $61.46. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $56.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The firm has a market cap of $72.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.17, a PEG ratio of 5.31 and a beta of 1.06.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 15.89%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.45 earnings per share. Williams Companies’s revenue was up 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.92 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is 80.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total value of $447,641.30. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,858 shares in the company, valued at $1,455,805.40. This trade represents a 23.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley raised Williams Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $52.00 to $58.00 in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America started coverage on Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Williams Companies from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.00.

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.