Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Holdings Lifted by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Atmos Energy stake by 11% in the first quarter, adding 416,933 shares to hold 4.2 million shares worth approximately $775.7 million. Institutional investors collectively own 90.17% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally cautious outlook, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $186.92; recent target changes ranged from $183 to $191.
• Atmos Energy exceeded quarterly estimates with $3.47 in earnings per share and $1.96 billion in revenue. The company also pays a $1 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 2.3% yield, and issued fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $8.40–$8.50.

Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 11.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,199,433 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 416,933 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 2.52% of Atmos Energy worth $775,719,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Compound Planning Inc. increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,654 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $277,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 1,579 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $265,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 1,514 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 0.8% during the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 8,153 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,506,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 39.1% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho cut their price target on Atmos Energy from $192.00 to $184.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 26th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $182.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $187.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $186.92.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.7%

ATO stock opened at $173.12 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a 50-day moving average of $173.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $178.01. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $154.55 and a 52-week high of $192.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.37 by $0.10. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.59% and a net margin of 27.58%.The business had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.03 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.44 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 26th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 49.14%.

Atmos Energy Profile

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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