Great Lakes Retirement Inc. Sells 6,549 Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Great Lakes Retirement Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 227,933 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 6,549 shares during the period. Williams Companies comprises approximately 1.6% of Great Lakes Retirement Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Great Lakes Retirement Inc.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $12,336,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in WMB. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 5.5% in the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,459 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 337 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 9,203 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $420,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the third quarter worth approximately $246,000. Empirical Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Williams Companies by 2.8% in the third quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC now owns 11,260 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $514,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the third quarter valued at approximately $235,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Williams Companies stock opened at $55.24 on Wednesday. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $51.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.31, a P/E/G ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 1.04. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.65 and a 12 month high of $61.46.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 80.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America began coverage on Williams Companies in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Truist Financial increased their target price on Williams Companies from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, CIBC boosted their price objective on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.