Five Utilities Stocks to Buy Now

#2 Williams Companies Inc (NYSE:WMB)

– Investors with Long Positions (as of December 31): 59

– Aggregate Value of Investors’ Holdings (as of December 31): $4.72 billion

Amid a 30% decline of Williams Companies Inc (NYSE:WMB)’s stock during the fourth quarter, the number of funds invested in the stock slid by 14 and the aggregate value of their holdings in it saw a drop of $1.32 billion. Richard Perry‘s Perry Capital was among the hedge funds that reduced their stakes in the company during the fourth quarter; it cut its holding by 4% to 8.06 million shares. The shares of Williams Companies Inc (NYSE:WMB) have again fallen heavily this year, largely due to the concerns about its impending merger with Energy Transfer Equity LP (NYSE:ETE). Though they have recovered by 13% since the company reiterated its commitment towards the merger, on March 14, they are still trading down by over 25% year-to-date. The 11 prominent analysts and research houses that track the stock currently have an average ‘Overweight’ rating and an average price target of $31.44, which represents a potential upside of 73.2% from the stock’s current trading price.

#1 Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE:KMI)

– Investors with Long Positions (as of December 31): 67

– Aggregate Value of Investors’ Holdings (as of December 31): $2.31 billion

Like all the other stock mentioned in this list Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE:KMI) also saw a decline in popularity as the number of funds bullish on the among the investors we track declined by five during the fourth quarter. However, it’s the only stock in this list that saw the aggregate value of their holdings increase by $486 million during the same period. Interestingly, the growth of the total value of hedge funds’ holdings took place amid a 46% slump witnessed by the stock. While Kinder Morgan Inc (NYSE:KMI)’s stock has appreciated by 28.8% so far this year, analysts remain skeptical if it could hold on to these gains. The main reason for their skepticism is that the gains have come on the back of a rally in oil prices. They feel if the normal forces of demand and supply are left untouched, oil will again head lower and Kinder Morgan could start declining. On March 17, analysts at Credit Suisse downgraded the stock to ‘Neutral’ from ‘Outperform’, but upped their price target to $22 from $20. Berkshire Hathaway initiated a large stake in Kinder Morgan during the fourth quarter by purchasing 26.53 million shares, thereby becoming its largest shareholder at the end of December among the funds in our database.

Disclosure: None