Franklin Resources Inc. Reduces Stock Position in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its position in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 76.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,047,698 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 6,762,346 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.17% of Williams Companies worth $93,477,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. SouthState Corp bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton increased its holdings in Williams Companies by 50.4% during the 3rd quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 752 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in Williams Companies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE:WMB opened at $54.43 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $54.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.44. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.65 and a 12 month high of $60.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The stock has a market cap of $66.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.97, a P/E/G ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 1.05.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.01. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 15.89%. The company had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.45 EPS. Williams Companies’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.92 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WMB shares. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $52.07.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In related news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.29, for a total transaction of $90,580.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 304,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,777,218. This trade represents a 0.65 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total transaction of $447,641.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 25,858 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,455,805.40. This trade represents a 23.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.