Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY Has $8.25 Million Stake in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Key Points

• Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY increased its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation by 3.5% to 53,505 shares, valued at approximately $8.25 million.
• Atmos Energy reported $1.16 earnings per share, slightly below estimates, and generated $838.77 million in revenue for the quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 2.1% and a payout ratio of 47.80%.

Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY grew its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 3.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 53,505 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,800 shares during the quarter. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $8,246,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $273,000. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,158 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 29,861 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,616,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 26.0% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 20.6% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 109,772 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,969,000 after acquiring an additional 18,753 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ATO shares. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, August 21st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $163.00 target price (down from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. Argus set a $172.00 target price on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday. Barclays reduced their price objective on Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $159.00 price objective (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. One equities research 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.27.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:ATO traded up $1.76 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $164.72. The stock had a trading volume of 113,783 shares, compared to its average volume of 960,042. The stock has a market cap of $26.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.63, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $162.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $156.92. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Atmos Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $136.03 and a fifty-two week 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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $838.77 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders 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 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.