Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Makes New Investment in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy Corporation, buying 1,667 shares valued at approximately $258,000.
• The company reported earnings per share of $1.16 for the last quarter, missing analysts' estimates of $1.17.
• Atmos Energy announced a $0.87 quarterly dividend to be paid on September 8th, yielding 2.1% at an annualized rate of $3.48.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 1,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $258,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 5,543,451 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 541.4% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,525,116 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $212,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,287,325 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 146.2% in 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 during the period. Merewether Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $47,817,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 21,802.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 282,109 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $43,608,000 after acquiring an additional 280,821 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $163.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup upped 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. Mizuho cut shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $165.00 to $164.00 in a report on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $156.00 price target on shares of Atmos Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $159.00 price target (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $158.27.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.1%

ATO traded down $0.24 on Wednesday, reaching $165.49. 206,678 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 977,959. Atmos Energy Corporation has a one year low of $127.43 and a one year high of $167.45. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $155.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.08. The company has a market cap of $26.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $838.77 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

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 given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is currently 47.80%.

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.