Diversify Advisory Services LLC Buys 1,698 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)

Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 22.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 9,433 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 1,698 shares during the quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,506,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Capital International Investors boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 211.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,160,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,136,463,000 after acquiring an additional 5,543,451 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,538,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 541.4% in 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 buying an additional 1,287,325 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 1,017,575 shares during the period. Finally, Merewether Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $47,817,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of ATO stock traded up $0.48 on Tuesday, hitting $158.70. The stock had a trading volume of 100,179 shares, compared to its average volume of 906,326. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $25.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.70. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $122.70 and a 12-month high of $167.45. The business has a 50 day moving average of $154.27 and a 200 day moving average of $151.15.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 business's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.85 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current 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 paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ATO shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $156.00 price objective on shares of Atmos Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Six 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $156.95.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the firm'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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.