KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Trims Holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Key Points

• KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS trimmed its position in Atmos Energy by 8.0% in Q4, selling 12,800 shares and ending the quarter with 147,159 shares (about 0.09% ownership) worth roughly $24.67 million.
• Atmos Energy beat Q4 expectations, reporting $2.44 EPS versus a $2.41 estimate and $1.34 billion in revenue versus $1.21 billion, and set FY2026 guidance of $8.15–$8.35 EPS (analysts project ~8.28 EPS).
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $1.00 (annualized $4.00, ~2.2% yield), and the stock carries a MarketBeat consensus "Hold" rating with a $181.11 target; market cap is about $30.15 billion and P/E around 23.7.

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS trimmed its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 8.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 147,159 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 12,800 shares during the quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS owned about 0.09% of Atmos Energy worth $24,668,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 85.9% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 158 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 270.2% in the 4th quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 174 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 105.4% in the 3rd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 191 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.4%

ATO stock opened at $182.26 on Thursday. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $149.98 and a 1-year high of $192.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company has a market capitalization of $30.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.67, a PEG ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.69. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $184.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $176.23.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 25.67%.The business had revenue of $1.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.23 EPS. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.150-8.350 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 23rd were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 23rd. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on ATO shares. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $167.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Atmos Energy from $197.00 to $195.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Atmos Energy from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Atmos Energy from $163.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $181.11.

Atmos Energy Company Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation NYSE: ATO is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos's core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company's services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.

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