180 Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,842 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $594,000.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 72.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. South Plains Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 181.2% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 433 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Ratings Changes
ATO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Argus raised shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.35.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on ATO
Insider Activity at Atmos Energy
In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the 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 now owns 172,632 shares in the company, valued at $26,063,979.36. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Atmos Energy Stock Performance
Shares of NYSE ATO traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $152.22. 867,177 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 935,833. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $113.46 and a 1-year high of $167.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $148.71. The firm has a market cap of $24.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.71.
Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last announced 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. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.85 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Atmos Energy Announces Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.33%.
Atmos Energy Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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