Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Has $25.91 Million Position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 3.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 167,633 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 5,536 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned about 0.11% of Atmos Energy worth $25,913,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ATO. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 202,059 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,234,000 after buying an additional 3,384 shares during the period. Missouri Trust & Investment Co raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 14.7% in the 1st quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 944 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $146,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 30.9% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,776 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,975,000 after purchasing an additional 3,015 shares during the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. increased its position in Atmos Energy by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 10,053 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,554,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 25.9% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,874 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $908,000 after buying an additional 1,209 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the topic of several research reports. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Mizuho downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $164.00 in a report on Monday, April 28th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $159.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Six 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $156.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the director now owns 172,632 shares in the company, valued at $26,063,979.36. This trade represents a 7.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

NYSE:ATO traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $152.23. The stock had a trading volume of 501,025 shares, compared to its average volume of 922,890. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $113.46 and a 12 month high of $167.45. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $148.86. 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 capitalization of $24.18 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.71.

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

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business 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 was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.33%.

Atmos Energy Company 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.