IFP Advisors Inc Raises Stake in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 35.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,181 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after buying an additional 1,885 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $389,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Up 3.5 %

NYSE WMB opened at $58.25 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $56.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $52.73. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $35.38 and a one year high of $61.46. 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 company has a market cap of $71.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.83, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.04.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. Research analysts anticipate that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on WMB. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $51.00 price objective on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Mizuho upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.21.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Chad A. Teply sold 26,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $7,511,890.08. This represents a 16.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams Companies Company 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.