Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. cut its holdings in shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. ( - ) by 51.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,050 shares of the pipeline company's stock after selling 8,580 shares during the quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Williams Companies were worth $436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Williams Companies Stock Performance traded down $0.56 during trading on Friday, hitting $59.05. 4,471,067 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,635,267. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.27, a PEG ratio of 5.01 and a beta of 0.87. The Williams Companies, Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.69 and a 12-month high of $61.67. The business has a 50 day moving average of $57.59 and a 200-day moving average of $56.18. Williams Companies ( - ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The pipeline company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47. Williams Companies had a return on equity of 15.85% and a net margin of 21.17%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that The Williams Companies, Inc. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year. Williams Companies Increases Dividend The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Williams Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Williams Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 109.29%. Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a \"buy\" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Williams Companies from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a \"sector perform\" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Williams Companies from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an \"equal weight\" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Williams Companies from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a \"hold\" rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Williams Companies from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an \"overweight\" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of \"Moderate Buy\" and a consensus price target of $57.77. Insider Activity at Williams Companies In other news, SVP Chad A. Teply sold 26,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.46, for a total value of $1,467,960.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 133,048 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,511,890.08. This represents a 16.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found . Also, COO Micheal G. Dunn sold 96,687 shares of Williams Companies stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.04, for a total transaction of $5,128,278.48. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 714,693 shares of the company's stock, valued at $37,907,316.72. This represents a 11.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found . Over the last quarter, insiders sold 139,583 shares of company stock valued at $7,563,278. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. Sells 8,580 Shares of The Williams Companies, Inc. (NYSE:WMB)

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. reduced its holdings in The Williams Companies, Inc. by 51.6% in the fourth quarter, resulting in a current value of $436,000 for the 8,050 shares held. The Williams Companies reported quarterly earnings of $0.47 per share, meeting analysts' expectations. The company increased its quarterly dividend to $0.50, up from $0.48, with a dividend yield of 3.39%. Analysts have upgraded their price targets and ratings, with an average rating of 'Moderate Buy' and a consensus price target of $57.77. Insider selling activity was notable, with SVP Chad A. Teply and COO Micheal G. Dunn each reducing their stake in the company.