Mizuho Securities USA LLC Has $6.25 Million Stock Holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC increased its holdings in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 46.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 115,535 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 36,494 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $6,253,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft grew its position in shares of Williams Companies by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 5,568 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $300,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Albion Financial Group UT grew its holdings in Williams Companies by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 1,184 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Sprinkle Financial Consultants LLC increased its stake in Williams Companies by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Sprinkle Financial Consultants LLC now owns 5,073 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank raised its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 30,813 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $1,669,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Wealth Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of Williams Companies by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Tower Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 4,591 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Williams Companies Stock Down 0.3 %

Williams Companies stock opened at $59.60 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $57.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $53.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a twelve month low of $37.18 and a twelve month high of $61.46. The company has a market capitalization of $72.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.57, a P/E/G ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 1.03.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 21.17%. As a group, equities analysts predict that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 109.29%.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 8,896 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.50, for a total transaction of $511,520.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 22,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,284,492.50. The trade was a 28.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Larry C. Larsen sold 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.94, for a total value of $455,520.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 81,265 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,627,229.10. The trade was a 8.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 139,583 shares of company stock worth $7,563,278 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Williams Companies from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Citigroup upped their target price on Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, CIBC lifted their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.21.

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.