Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. Reduces Holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc. lowered its stake in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB - Free Report) by 44.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,587 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 30,636 shares during the period. Cutter & CO Brokerage Inc.'s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $1,640,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the first quarter worth $27,000. Fairman Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the first quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new position in Williams Companies during the first quarter worth about $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Seaport Res Ptn cut Williams Companies from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, August 19th. CIBC raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $42.83.

Williams Companies Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE WMB traded up $0.28 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $45.77. The company had a trading volume of 7,265,188 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,241,959. The stock has a market cap of $55.78 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.29 and a beta of 1.05. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $32.49 and a one year high of $45.81. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $43.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.05. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.17% and a net margin of 27.11%. The firm had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.42 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.15%. Williams Companies's payout ratio is currently 79.83%.

About Williams Companies

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.