Investors Only: WMB Announces Significant Dividend Increase; CVX, XOM Raise Dividend

Williams Cos raises quarterly dividend 60% to $0.20 per share: This 60 percent increase in the quarterly dividend is consistent with the plan the company described on February 16, 2011, to increase shareholder value.

Williams is targeting an additional 10 percent to 15 percent increase for the quarterly dividends it will pay beginning in June 2012.

Along this same line, because of an "embarrassment" of riches when the major oil companies report their quarterly earnings starting tomorrow, there has been talk that the majors will want to return to shareholders as quickly as possible some of those profits in terms of increased dividends and/or stock re-purchases. We'll see.

FYI.

UPDATES

Update: 4:26 p.m., April 27, 2011:  3:36PM Chevron announces 8.3% increase in quarterly dividend to $0.78/share (CVX)

Update, 2:32 p.m., April 27, 2011: 1:43PM Exxon Mobil increased its qtrly dividend to $0.47/share from $0.44/share (XOM)