Fulton Bank N.A. Sells 11,343 Shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB

Fulton Bank N.A. reduced its holdings in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 49.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,768 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 11,343 shares during the quarter. Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in Williams Companies in the third quarter valued at about $35,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of Williams Companies in the third quarter worth about $36,000. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora boosted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 71.2% in the 3rd quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 630 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Williams Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting Williams Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: New analyst coverage: Truist initiated coverage with a “buy” and an $84 price target (about a mid‑teens upside vs. current levels), which can attract demand from institutional investors and supports the stock. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Growth narrative: CEO Chad Zamarin highlighted rising power demand from data centers and how Williams is positioned to serve that market — a potential multi-year revenue/volume tailwind if Williams secures more data‑center power business. Williams CEO on data center power
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term upside in analyst models: US Capital Advisors’ note includes a FY2028 EPS projection of $2.95 and multi‑year quarterly forecasts that imply accelerating earnings out years, supporting a longer‑term bullish view if the company executes. MarketBeat coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Political/industry context: Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt appointed energy executive Alan Armstrong to the U.S. Senate. Armstrong’s background in energy could be supportive for industry policy, but the direct impact on Williams is uncertain and likely limited in the near term. Alan Armstrong Becomes Newest U.S. Senator
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term estimate cuts: US Capital Advisors trimmed several near‑term EPS forecasts (Q2 and Q3 2026 down slightly, and FY2026 lowered to $2.18 from $2.22). Those cuts increase short‑term execution risk and may pressure sentiment until results/visibility improve. MarketBeat coverage

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 10,107 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.91, for a total transaction of $757,115.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 17,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,290,699.30. This trade represents a 36.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Payvand Fazel sold 2,898 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.15, for a total value of $211,988.70. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 31,766 shares in the company, valued at $2,323,682.90. The trade was a 8.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 51,369 shares of company stock valued at $3,769,012. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WMB has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $69.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Williams Companies from $80.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77.00.

Williams Companies Stock Up 1.1%

NYSE:WMB opened at $74.39 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $63.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Williams Companies, Inc. has a one year low of $51.58 and a one year high of $76.87. The company has a market cap of $90.87 billion, a PE ratio of 34.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.63.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The pipeline company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. Williams Companies had a net margin of 21.90% and a return on equity of 17.32%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.47 earnings per share. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 98.13%.

Williams Companies Company Profile

Williams Companies, Inc (NYSE: WMB) is a U.S.-based energy infrastructure company focused on the midstream segment of the natural gas value chain. The company develops, owns and operates assets that gather, process, transport and store natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGLs). Its operations support the movement of gas from production areas to end users including utilities, power generators, industrial customers and export facilities.

Williams’s product and service offering includes interstate and intrastate pipeline transmission, gas-gathering systems, processing facilities that remove impurities and separate NGLs, storage services and fractionation and transportation of NGL products.