Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB Shares Purchased by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 97.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,030,419 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after acquiring an additional 508,423 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.08% of Williams Companies worth $65,277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the second quarter worth $765,164,000. BROOKFIELD Corp ON raised its position in Williams Companies by 190.3% during the second quarter. BROOKFIELD Corp ON now owns 12,028,186 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $755,490,000 after buying an additional 7,884,730 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Williams Companies by 27.3% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 14,417,821 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $905,583,000 after buying an additional 3,089,390 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Williams Companies by 30.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,073,602 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $574,856,000 after buying an additional 2,116,526 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Artisan Partners Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Williams Companies by 39.0% during the 2nd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 6,954,733 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $436,827,000 after buying an additional 1,950,485 shares during the period. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on WMB. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Williams Companies from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Williams Companies from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Williams Companies from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.86.

Insider Activity at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Lane Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.24, for a total transaction of $150,480.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 291,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,906,803.16. This represents a 0.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CAO Mary A. Hausman sold 10,107 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.91, for a total value of $757,115.37. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 17,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,290,699.30. This trade represents a 36.97% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 41,107 shares of company stock valued at $3,009,215. Corporate insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Williams Companies Stock Up 0.8%

Williams Companies stock opened at $73.79 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 1-year low of $51.58 and a 1-year high of $76.87. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $62.71. The company has a market capitalization of $90.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.63.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The pipeline company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.02). Williams Companies had a return on equity of 17.32% and a net margin of 21.90%.The business had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.47 earnings per share. Williams Companies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.200-2.380 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 93.46%.

Trending Headlines about Williams Companies

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

• Positive Sentiment: Global LNG supply disruption has pushed U.S. natural gas prices higher, boosting demand outlook for U.S. pipeline and export infrastructure providers like Williams. Higher spreads and export demand generally support volumes and fee-based revenue for midstream operators. U.S. Natural Gas Prices Rise on Global LNG Supply Disruption
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment is shifting upward — Williams had a recent price-target raise (to $87) and is being highlighted among income-oriented oil & gas stocks, which can attract buy-side interest and support multiple expansion. The Williams Companies, Inc. (WMB) Price Target Raised to $87
• Positive Sentiment: Media and analysts are calling natural gas a bigger investment opportunity amid geopolitical tensions, and Williams is repeatedly named as a key U.S. infrastructure play to benefit from rising export volumes. That narrative supports higher investor appetite for WMB. Forget Oil, Expert Sees ‘bigger Opportunity’ In Natural Gas Amid War
• Neutral Sentiment: Williams executives will present at CERAWeek 2026, providing management visibility on strategy (exports, infrastructure investments, innovation). Investor presentations can help sentiment but are informational until they produce new guidance or contracts. Williams Leadership to Share Insights on Energy Infrastructure and Innovation at CERAWeek 2026
• Neutral Sentiment: Williams’ Transco unit has commenced a registered exchange offer for two series of senior notes (2036 and 2056). This is primarily a capital-markets action (registration/liquidity of notes) — watch details for any consent or tender terms that could impact cash flow or refinancing cost. Williams’ Transco Commences Registered Exchange Offer for Its 5.100% Senior Notes Due 2036 and 5.750% Senior Notes Due 2056
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader investor interest in midstream-focused ETFs (e.g., VanEck EINC) highlights demand for yield and infrastructure exposure; that can direct flows to big midstream names like WMB but also increases sensitivity to oil/gas price swings and distribution risk perceptions. Retirees Chasing Monthly Cash Flow From This ETF May Be Surprised by the Fine Print

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.