Capital International Inc. CA Buys 36,595 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Capital International Inc. CA lifted its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 14.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 282,458 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 36,595 shares during the period. Capital International Inc. CA owned 0.18% of Atmos Energy worth $39,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,217 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $309,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 9,865 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,374,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Trust Point Inc. boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 2,567 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 2,921 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Finally, Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 2,524 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE ATO traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $159.68. The company's stock had a trading volume of 819,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 922,352. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $110.97 and a 12 month high of $161.49. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $151.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $145.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The company has a market cap of $25.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $154.39.

Atmos Energy Profile

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.