8,081 Shares in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Acquired by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group acquired 8,081 shares of Atmos Energy worth approximately $1.39 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 90.17% of ATO’s outstanding shares.
• Analysts maintain a generally cautious view, with four Buy ratings and nine Hold ratings. Atmos Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $188.27.
• Atmos Energy exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.43 EPS versus the $1.35 consensus estimate, while declaring a $1.00 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 2.3% annualized yield.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 8,081 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,392,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATO. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $237,000. Focused Alpha LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at $667,000. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at $171,000. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $2,624,975,000. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $465,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ATO shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on Atmos Energy from $182.00 to $191.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Barclays lowered their target price on Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $193.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Argus cut their price target on Atmos Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on Atmos Energy from $188.00 to $179.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $188.27.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $170.60 on Wednesday. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $160.10 and a 52 week high of $192.51. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $173.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $178.28. The company has a market cap of $28.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.29, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 28.50%.The company had revenue of $879.06 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $900.82 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.16 EPS. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Research analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 24th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 24th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 47.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William James Ware acquired 300 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 488 shares of the company's stock, valued at $81,783.92. The trade was a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation NYSE: ATO is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos's core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company's services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.

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