Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) Shares Sold by Choreo LLC

Key Points

• Choreo LLC reduced its stake in Atmos Energy by 38.3%, now holding 3,499 shares worth $541,000.
• Atmos Energy reported earnings per share of $3.03 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $2.92, with revenue increasing 18.4% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.87, yielding 2.22%, with a payout ratio of 48.33%.

Choreo LLC decreased its position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 38.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,499 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,176 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $541,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 191.2% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 166 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. South Plains Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 379.7% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 331 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New Hampshire purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ATO shares. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $159.00 price target (up previously from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a report on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $157.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE ATO traded down $0.35 on Thursday, reaching $155.85. The stock had a trading volume of 95,871 shares, compared to its average volume of 960,997. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $154.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $151.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $24.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.70. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $126.08 and a 1 year high of $167.45.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 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 net margin of 25.35% and a return on equity of 9.05%. The company's revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.85 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were given a $0.87 dividend. 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 2.23%. Atmos Energy's 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.