FORA Capital LLC Makes New $676,000 Investment in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Key Points

• FORA Capital LLC has acquired 4,371 shares of Atmos Energy Corporation valued at approximately $676,000.
• Atmos Energy reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.16, missing estimates by $0.01, and achieved a revenue of $838.77 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, with a yield of 2.1%, to be paid on September 8th.

FORA Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,371 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $676,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,791,335 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,213,925,000 after buying an additional 424,235 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,078,424 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $428,732,000 after acquiring an additional 58,391 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 146.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,713,421 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $238,628,000 after acquiring an additional 1,017,575 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Atmos Energy by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,639,073 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $228,274,000 after purchasing an additional 233,790 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 541.4% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,525,116 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $212,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,287,325 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

ATO opened at $165.58 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.75. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $159.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $155.40. Atmos Energy Corporation has a one year low of $130.66 and a one year high of $168.86.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $838.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.00% and a net margin of 25.05%.During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.08 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 47.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on ATO shares. Barclays cut their target price on Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 17th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $163.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $158.27.

Atmos Energy Company 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.