AMF Tjanstepension AB Makes New Investment in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Key Points

• AMF Tjanstepension AB acquired 102,632 shares of Atmos Energy Corporation, valued at approximately $15.8 million, representing a 0.06% ownership stake as of the latest SEC filing.
• Wall Street analysts show a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Atmos Energy, with an average target price of $162.50.
• Atmos Energy recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, with an annualized yield of 2.0%.

AMF Tjanstepension AB acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 102,632 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $15,825,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB owned about 0.06% of Atmos Energy as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hennessy Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.2% in the second quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 164,286 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,318,000 after buying an additional 3,500 shares in the last quarter. Keystone Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 67.3% in the second quarter. Keystone Financial Group Inc. now owns 957 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $150,000 after buying an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $61,000. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 6.4% in the second quarter. Asset Advisors Investment Management LLC now owns 12,475 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,923,000 after buying an additional 747 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $228,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ATO shares. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $163.00 price target (down from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $162.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Argus set a $172.00 price target on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $162.50.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of ATO opened at $170.07 on Friday. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $136.05 and a 52-week high of $171.20. The business's fifty day moving average is $164.38 and its 200-day moving average is $158.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.37. The firm has a market cap of $27.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.36, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.74.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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). Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. The business had revenue of $838.77 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $848.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is presently 47.80%.

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.

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