Brasada Capital Management LP Acquires 6,953 Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Brasada Capital Management LP raised its holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 3.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 217,284 shares of the pipeline company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,953 shares during the period. Williams Companies accounts for about 2.1% of Brasada Capital Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Brasada Capital Management LP's holdings in Williams Companies were worth $12,138,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WMB. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. AlphaMark Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Sandy Spring Bank bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Chad A. Teply sold 26,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 133,048 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,511,890.08. The trade was a 16.35 % 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. Also, COO Micheal G. Dunn sold 96,687 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.04, for a total value of $5,128,278.48. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 714,693 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,907,316.72. This trade represents a 11.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 139,583 shares of company stock worth $7,563,278 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Williams Companies Price Performance

Shares of Williams Companies stock opened at $58.18 on Wednesday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $57.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.94 billion, a PE ratio of 31.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.87. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.69 and a 12 month high of $61.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.47. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 15.85%. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. 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 3.44%. Williams Companies's payout ratio is currently 109.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. CIBC boosted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.77.

Williams Companies 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.

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