Hantz Financial Services Inc. Takes Position in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 294,523 shares of the pipeline company's stock, valued at approximately $12,517,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMB. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth approximately $306,417,000. Blackstone Inc. increased its position in shares of Williams Companies by 109.1% in the 1st quarter. Blackstone Inc. now owns 6,466,660 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $252,006,000 after purchasing an additional 3,373,800 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 21.3% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,593,482 shares of the pipeline company's stock valued at $403,801,000 after purchasing an additional 2,039,703 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 40.1% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,753,223 shares of the pipeline company's stock worth $224,203,000 after purchasing an additional 1,647,469 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Bankshares Inc acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the fourth quarter worth $56,223,000. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Argus upgraded Williams Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on Williams Companies from $40.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Williams Companies from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $38.00 to $46.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Williams Companies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $42.83.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

WMB stock traded up $0.28 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.77. The company had a trading volume of 7,265,188 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,437,417. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $43.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $40.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market cap of $55.78 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.25 and a beta of 1.05. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.49 and a 1-year high of $45.81.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.17% and a net margin of 27.11%. The business had revenue of $2.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.15%. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio is currently 79.83%.

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.