IFM Investors Pty Ltd Buys 2,829 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 5.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,522 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,829 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $8,119,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ATO. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 211.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,160,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,136,463,000 after acquiring an additional 5,543,451 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth $206,538,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 541.4% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,525,116 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $212,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,287,325 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 146.2% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,713,421 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $238,628,000 after buying an additional 1,017,575 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $112,002,000. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the director owned 172,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,063,979.36. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Argus raised Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $156.05.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ATO traded up $1.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $153.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 333,269 shares, compared to its average volume of 916,404. 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 one year low of $113.46 and a one year high of $167.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $155.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $150.08.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.92 by $0.11. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.35% and a return on equity of 9.05%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.85 EPS. Atmos Energy's quarterly revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Atmos Energy 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.