Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Shares Newly Purchased by Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc.

Key Points

• Tilia Fiduciary Partners purchased 18,048 Atmos Energy shares worth approximately $2.8 million, making the utility stock 1.4% of its portfolio. Institutional investors collectively own 90.17% of ATO.
• Analyst sentiment is largely cautious: ATO has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $183.58, with recent target cuts from Barclays, JPMorgan, and Jefferies.
• Atmos Energy exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $1.43 versus the $1.35 consensus estimate, while maintaining a $4.00 annualized dividend yielding about 2.5%.

Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 18,048 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,823,000. Atmos Energy makes up approximately 1.4% of Tilia Fiduciary Partners Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATO. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Continuum Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 627.3% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays cut their price target 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. Argus reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $185.00 price objective on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $180.00 price objective (down from $198.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $173.00 to $167.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $183.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director William Ware purchased 300 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 488 shares of the company's stock, valued at $81,783.92. This represents a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

ATO stock opened at $161.69 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $164.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $173.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market cap of $27.32 billion, a PE ratio of 19.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.57. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $154.72 and a 1-year high of $192.51.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $879.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $900.82 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 28.50%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 24th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.62%.

Atmos Energy Company Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation is a regulated natural gas distribution and pipeline company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The company delivers natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and institutional customers and is one of the largest natural gas distributors in the United States.

Atmos Energy operates through two primary businesses: natural gas distribution and pipeline and storage operations. Its distribution activities include acquiring, transporting, storing and delivering natural gas, while its pipeline operations provide transportation and storage services and support the company's distribution network.

The company serves customers across eight states, including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding ATO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.