Yeomans Consulting Group Inc. Makes New $357,000 Investment in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Yeomans Consulting Group Inc. acquired a new stake in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 6,594 shares of the pipeline company’s stock, valued at approximately $357,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Williams Companies in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 252 shares during the period. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 120.8% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 996 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 545 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

WMB stock opened at $59.58 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $72.62 billion, a PE ratio of 25.14, a P/E/G ratio of 5.31 and a beta of 1.06. The business has a 50 day moving average of $56.33 and a 200-day moving average of $50.12. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.65 and a 12-month high of $61.46.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.52 billion. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.89% and a net margin of 27.36%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.45 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were given a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 80.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Williams Companies

In other news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 7,951 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.30, for a total transaction of $447,641.30. Following the completion of 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WMB. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays upped their price target on Williams Companies from $46.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. CIBC increased their price target on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Williams Companies from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on Williams Companies in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $53.00.

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.