Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Sells 297 Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC decreased its holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 6.1% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,582 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 297 shares during the quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $209,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. SouthState Corp bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at $31,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Fairman Group LLC purchased a new stake in Williams Companies during the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

NYSE:WMB opened at $51.05 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $45.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.65 and a 12-month high of $51.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.45, a P/E/G ratio of 6.89 and a beta of 1.05.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.11% and a return on equity of 16.17%. The firm had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.42 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were paid a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is currently 79.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies

In other news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.29, for a total value of $90,580.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 304,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,777,218. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Williams Companies from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Williams Companies from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $52.00 to $58.00 in a report on Friday, October 4th. Argus upgraded shares of Williams Companies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. StockNews.com lowered Williams Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.08.

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.