Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) Receives $156.05 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $156.05.

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ATO shares. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho lowered shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $156.00 target price on shares of Atmos Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.98, for a total transaction of $2,264,700.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 172,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,063,979.36. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 191.2% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 166 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 72.5% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 141.2% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 234 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:ATO traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $153.77. The stock had a trading volume of 980,324 shares, compared to its average volume of 921,916. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.36, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.71. Atmos Energy has a 1-year low of $113.46 and a 1-year high of $167.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $156.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $149.59.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.92 by $0.11. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 25.35%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.85 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.33%.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the regulated natural gas distribution, and pipeline and storage businesses in the United States. It operates through two segments, Distribution, and Pipeline and Storage. The Distribution segment is involved in the regulated natural gas distribution and related sales operations in eight states.