The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Shares Bought by Great Lakes Retirement Inc.

Great Lakes Retirement Inc. grew its holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 7.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 198,882 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,431 shares during the quarter. Williams Companies comprises 1.1% of Great Lakes Retirement Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Great Lakes Retirement Inc.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $6,927,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Patten Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 23,899 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $832,000 after buying an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Williams Companies by 2.9% in the third quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,476 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $353,000 after acquiring an additional 298 shares in the last quarter. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 1.1% during the second quarter. Holt Capital Advisors L.L.C. dba Holt Capital Partners L.P. now owns 26,922 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $878,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Williams Companies by 1.0% during the third quarter. Buckley Wealth Management LLC now owns 30,865 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $1,040,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horan Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Williams Companies by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 11,753 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $396,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Williams Companies Stock Performance

NYSE WMB traded up $0.45 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $38.54. 5,065,438 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,160,260. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.26 and a 12-month high of $38.77. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $35.41 and a 200 day moving average of $35.12. The company has a market cap of $46.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.07 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The pipeline company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.01. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.20% and a net margin of 29.22%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.53 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.93%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Williams Companies from $41.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.09.

Williams Companies Company 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.