Bank of Nova Scotia Sells 4,223 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)

Bank of Nova Scotia trimmed its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 19.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,973 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,223 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,624,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 211.8% in 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 buying an additional 5,543,451 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,107,267 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $432,749,000 after purchasing an additional 223,809 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,078,424 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $428,732,000 after purchasing an additional 58,391 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 146.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,713,421 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $238,628,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,575 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 16.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,639,073 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $228,274,000 after purchasing an additional 233,790 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on ATO shares. Mizuho cut shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup increased their price target 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 dropped their price target 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. Morgan Stanley set a $156.00 target price on Atmos Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.27.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:ATO traded up $1.62 during trading on Friday, hitting $164.34. 1,416,091 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 980,694. 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 firm has a market cap of $26.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.57, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.69. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $154.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $152.64. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $126.18 and a 1-year high of $167.45.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.17 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $838.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.12% and a net margin of 25.05%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 47.80%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.98, for a total transaction of $2,264,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 172,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,063,979.36. The trade was a 7.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

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.