The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) Shares Sold by Federated Hermes Inc.

Federated Hermes Inc. lowered its position in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB) by 31.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,362,419 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 4,266,208 shares during the period. Williams Companies comprises approximately 0.8% of Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position. Federated Hermes Inc. owned about 0.77% of Williams Companies worth $326,093,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WMB. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. HWG Holdings LP purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its stake in Williams Companies by 52.5% in the 2nd quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 915 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares during the period. Finally, Carmel Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Williams Companies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 86.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Williams Companies Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Williams Companies stock traded up $0.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $37.72. The company had a trading volume of 2,406,329 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,053,399. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $36.79 and its 200-day moving average is $35.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $45.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.89 and a beta of 1.05. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $28.27 and a fifty-two week high of $39.76.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The pipeline company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.01. Williams Companies had a net margin of 29.22% and a return on equity of 16.20%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.53 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.475 per share. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.04%. Williams Companies’s payout ratio is 72.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on WMB shares. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $43.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $34.00 price target on shares of Williams Companies in a report on Thursday. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Williams Companies presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $38.55.

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.