Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB Shares Sold by CI Investments Inc.

CI Investments Inc. cut its position in Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 2.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,501,586 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 65,211 shares during the period. CI Investments Inc. owned 0.20% of Williams Companies worth $158,475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp purchased a new stake in Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Aspect Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 81.3% during the 2nd quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 582 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams Companies Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE:WMB opened at $76.23 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $93.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.62, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.63. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $51.58 and a 12-month high of $76.87. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $65.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $61.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The pipeline company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.02). Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.90% and a return on equity of 17.32%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.47 EPS. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is presently 93.46%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 27,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.92, for a total value of $1,968,840.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 293,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,377,154.28. The trade was a 8.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 10,107 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.91, for a total value of $757,115.37. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 17,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,290,699.30. This trade represents a 36.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 41,107 shares of company stock worth $2,982,535 over the last 90 days. 0.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WMB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Research raised Williams Companies from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Williams Companies from $72.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $78.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $75.86.

Williams Companies Company Profile

Williams Companies, Inc (NYSE: WMB) is a U.S.-based energy infrastructure company focused on the midstream segment of the natural gas value chain. The company develops, owns and operates assets that gather, process, transport and store natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs). Its operations support the movement of gas from production areas to end users including utilities, power generators, industrial customers and export facilities.

Williams’s product and service offering includes interstate and intrastate pipeline transmission, gas-gathering systems, processing facilities that remove impurities and separate NGLs, storage services and fractionation and transportation of NGL products.