Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC Increases Stake in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 1.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 74,009 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Williams Companies comprises approximately 0.8% of Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $4,005,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of WMB. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 50.4% during the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 752 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter worth about $35,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in Williams Companies by 120.8% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 996 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 545 shares during the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total transaction of $447,641.30. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,858 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,455,805.40. This represents a 23.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Shares of WMB stock opened at $59.22 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $72.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.57. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $32.65 and a one year high of $60.36. The company’s 50-day moving average is $56.13 and its 200 day moving average is $49.71.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.45 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is currently 80.17%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on WMB. Barclays lifted 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. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.00.

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.