Williams Companies, Inc. (The) $WMB Shares Sold by Hennessy Advisors Inc.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Williams Companies, Inc. (The) (NYSE:WMB) by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 414,121 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 27,200 shares during the period. Williams Companies makes up 1.0% of Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $28,148,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new stake in Williams Companies in the second quarter valued at about $3,320,606,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Williams Companies by 43.4% in the second quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 33,097,208 shares of the pipeline company’s stock valued at $2,460,446,000 after buying an additional 10,013,946 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its holdings in Williams Companies by 20.9% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 11,710,478 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $852,289,000 after buying an additional 2,020,899 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $596,077,000. Finally, Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP bought a new stake in shares of Williams Companies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $500,305,000. 86.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on WMB shares. Scotiabank cut their price objective on Williams Companies from $86.00 to $85.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Williams Companies from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Stifel Nicolaus started coverage on shares of Williams Companies in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Williams Companies from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Williams Companies has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $86.06.

More Williams Companies News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Dividend reaffirmed: Williams approved its regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.525 per share, equivalent to $2.10 annually. The payment is scheduled for December 28, 2026, for shareholders of record on December 11. The decision reinforces WMB’s appeal as an income-oriented pipeline investment. How Raised Earnings Estimates At Williams Companies Has Changed Its Investment Story
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term earnings estimates increased: US Capital Advisors raised its EPS forecasts for the first, second, third and fourth quarters of 2027, as well as full-year 2027 to $2.24 from $2.07 and full-year 2028 to $2.81 from $2.67. The revisions suggest analysts see improving growth potential from Williams’ infrastructure and gathering operations. Williams Companies analyst estimate revisions
• Positive Sentiment: Options activity indicates bullish positioning: Traders purchased a large volume of WMB call options, signaling that some market participants are positioning for additional upside, although options activity does not guarantee a change in fundamentals. Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Williams Companies Call Options
• Neutral Sentiment: Q3 earnings expectations remain the immediate focus: Analysts are evaluating operating metrics such as gathering volumes and segment EBITDA ahead of Williams’ quarterly report. Current estimates center on approximately $0.51 in Q3 EPS, with attention on whether results support the company’s full-year outlook. Gear Up for The Williams Companies Q3 Earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term estimates were trimmed: US Capital Advisors reduced its Q3 2026 EPS forecast from $0.54 to $0.51 and its full-year 2026 forecast from $2.34 to $2.33. The revisions are small but could limit near-term enthusiasm ahead of earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Interest-rate risk remains a concern: Commentary warns that rising rates could pressure the broader bull market. Although pipelines are viewed as relatively defensive, higher borrowing costs can weigh on valuation and dividend-focused stocks such as WMB. Why Rising Rates Could Break the Bull Market

Williams Companies Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of WMB stock opened at $74.32 on Monday. Williams Companies, Inc. has a 52-week low of $56.19 and a 52-week high of $80.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market cap of $90.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.61, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 0.62. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $72.21 and its 200-day moving average is $72.28.

Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The pipeline company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.50. Williams Companies had a net margin of 25.17% and a return on equity of 18.49%. The firm had revenue of $3.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.46 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.42 EPS for the current year.

Williams Companies Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.5250 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 11th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Williams Companies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.67%.

Insider Transactions at Williams Companies

In other Williams Companies news, SVP Terrance Wilson sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.85, for a total transaction of $135,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 262,259 shares in the company, valued at $17,794,273.15. This trade represents a 0.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 17,000 shares of company stock worth $1,260,130 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.47% of the company’s stock.

About Williams Companies

The Williams Companies, Inc is an energy infrastructure company headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Founded in 1908 as Williams Brothers, the company has evolved from an early pipeline contractor into a major operator of natural gas infrastructure in the United States.

Williams primarily gathers, processes, transports and stores natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its assets include interstate and regional pipelines, gas processing and fractionation facilities, storage operations, and gathering systems that connect producers with utilities, industrial customers, power generators and other energy markets.