24,859 Shares in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) Bought by Navellier & Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Navellier & Associates Inc. has acquired 24,859 shares of Atmos Energy Corporation, valued at approximately $4,012,000, as part of their new investment during the first quarter.
• Atmos Energy's shares are currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" with a consensus target price of $156.95 according to various brokerages, with some analysts raising their ratings to "strong-buy."
• Atmos Energy recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, which translates to an annualized dividend of $3.48 and a dividend yield of 2.22%.

Navellier & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 24,859 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,012,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ATO. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $233,000. LPL Financial LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 22.5% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 91,019 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,676,000 after acquiring an additional 16,735 shares in the last quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 14.1% in the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 9,147 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,274,000 after purchasing an additional 1,130 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 5,975 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $832,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the period. Finally, Korea Investment CORP grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 78.1% in the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 113,773 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $15,845,000 after purchasing an additional 49,881 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE ATO traded down $0.73 on Friday, reaching $156.98. 533,687 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 645,805. Atmos Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $125.25 and a fifty-two week high of $167.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.70. The business's fifty day moving average price is $154.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $151.53.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.11. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.05% and a net margin of 25.35%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.85 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on ATO shares. Mizuho lowered Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $165.00 to $164.00 in a report on Monday, April 28th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $156.00 price objective on Atmos Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Six 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 MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $156.95.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.98, for a total value of $2,264,700.00. Following the sale, the director owned 172,632 shares in the company, valued at $26,063,979.36. The trade was a 7.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.48% of the stock is 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.