Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Purchased by Czech National Bank

Czech National Bank grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 8.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 36,457 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,799 shares during the quarter. Czech National Bank's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $5,636,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $233,000. Golden State Equity Partners boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 28,909.1% during the fourth quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 3,191 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 3,180 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 2,524 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 140.7% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,728 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 1,010 shares during the period. Finally, Trust Point Inc. boosted its stake 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 worth $358,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:ATO traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $152.22. The stock had a trading volume of 867,177 shares, compared to its average volume of 936,434. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.68, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.74. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $113.46 and a twelve month high of $167.45. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $148.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.11. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.85 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is 48.33%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 172,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,063,979.36. This trade represents a 7.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Mizuho downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. 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 note on Friday, May 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $156.35.

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.