680,125 Shares in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Purchased by Cinctive Capital Management LP

Cinctive Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 680,125 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $36,808,000. Williams Companies makes up approximately 1.9% of Cinctive Capital Management LP's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Cinctive Capital Management LP owned 0.06% of Williams Companies as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other news, SVP Chad A. Teply sold 26,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.46, for a total value of $1,467,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 133,048 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,511,890.08. This represents a 16.35 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Larry C. Larsen sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total value of $455,520.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 81,265 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,627,229.10. This trade represents a 8.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 139,583 shares of company stock valued at $7,563,278. 0.44% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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Williams Companies Stock Performance

NYSE WMB traded down $4.42 on Friday, hitting $54.61. 18,979,148 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,574,236. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $57.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.59 billion, a PE ratio of 29.84, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $37.18 and a 1-year high of $61.67.

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

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Williams Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio is 109.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on WMB shares. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target 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. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. CIBC increased their price objective on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Williams Companies from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.07.

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.