Toroso Investments LLC Has $2.44 Million Holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Toroso Investments LLC raised its position in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB – Get Rating) by 79.8% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 85,069 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after purchasing an additional 37,767 shares during the quarter. Toroso Investments LLC’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $2,435,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Bray Capital Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. grew its position in shares of Williams Companies by 52.5% during the 2nd quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 915 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 315 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Williams Companies during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William H. Spence acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 14th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $29.61 per share, for a total transaction of $148,050.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 48,521 shares in the company, valued at $1,436,706.81. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.43% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Williams Companies Price Performance

WMB opened at $28.82 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $32.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The company has a market cap of $35.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 1.17. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $28.06 and a 12-month high of $37.97.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 20th. The pipeline company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.18 billion. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 16.02% and a net margin of 18.69%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.39 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Williams Companies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 13th will be issued a $0.4475 dividend. This is an increase from Williams Companies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 10th. This represents a $1.79 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.21%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio is 106.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WMB has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Argus cut Williams Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Williams Companies from $37.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Raymond James reduced their target price on Williams Companies from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 28th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $40.00 to $39.00 in a research report on Friday, December 16th. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research report on Thursday, December 8th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.90.

About Williams Companies

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The Williams Cos., Inc operates as an energy infrastructure company, which explores, produces, transports, sells and processes natural gas and petroleum products. It operates through the following segments: Transmission and Gulf of Mexico, Northeast G&P, and West. The Transmission and Gulf of Mexico segment consists of interstate natural gas pipelines, the Transco and Northwest Pipelines, as well as natural gas gathering and processing and crude oil production handling and transportation assets in the Gulf Coast region.