Beech Hill Advisors Inc. Sells 1,517 Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Beech Hill Advisors Inc. decreased its position in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 34,083 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 1,517 shares during the period. Beech Hill Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $1,845,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its holdings in Williams Companies by 50.4% during the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 752 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the period. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter valued at about $35,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Trading Up 0.3 %

WMB traded up $0.15 during trading on Thursday, reaching $58.16. The company had a trading volume of 386,230 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,285,117. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.95 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.46. The stock has a market cap of $70.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.54, a PEG ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 1.06. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.65 and a 52 week high of $60.36.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The pipeline company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.01. Williams Companies had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 15.89%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.45 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.27%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 80.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on WMB. Mizuho boosted their price target on Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $51.00 price target on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Friday, January 10th. 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 target on the stock. Finally, CIBC raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $53.00.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total value of $447,641.30. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 25,858 shares in the company, valued at $1,455,805.40. This trade represents a 23.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

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.