Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) Shares Bought by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation by 3.6%, owning a total of 57,427 shares valued at $8.88 million as of the most recent reporting period.
• Atmos Energy reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $3.03, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenue growing 18.4% year-over-year to $1.95 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 2.22% and a dividend payout ratio of 48.33%.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 3.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,427 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 1,980 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $8,877,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ATO. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.7% in the first quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 152,959 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $23,644,000 after purchasing an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the first quarter valued at about $119,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 202,681 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,330,000 after purchasing an additional 1,424 shares during the period. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 19.6% in the first quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 7,787 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,204,000 after buying an additional 1,278 shares during the period. Finally, Obermeyer Wealth Partners acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $2,193,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.98, for a total value of $2,264,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 172,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,063,979.36. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $156.98 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $125.25 and a 12 month high of $167.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $154.50 and a 200-day moving average of $151.62. The company has a market capitalization of $24.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.70.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.92 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 25.35%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.85 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on ATO. Citigroup raised their price objective on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Barclays reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Mizuho downgraded Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $156.95.

About Atmos Energy

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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