Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. Sells 4,300 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)

Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. lowered its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 7.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 54,600 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,300 shares during the period. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.'s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $8,440,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth $233,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,872 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 48,030 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,689,000 after purchasing an additional 6,369 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,195 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $166,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,868,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the 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 sale, the director now directly owns 172,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $26,063,979.36. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

NYSE ATO traded down $0.07 on Wednesday, reaching $152.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 501,025 shares, compared to its average volume of 923,785. Atmos Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $113.46 and a twelve month high of $167.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market cap of $24.18 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.71. The firm's 50 day moving average is $156.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $148.88.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.11. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.35% and a return on equity of 9.05%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.85 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on ATO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective 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. Citigroup boosted their price target on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.05.

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.