Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO is Partners Group Holding AG's 9th Largest Position

Key Points

• Partners Group Holding AG increased its holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation by 32.4% in Q1, now owning 366,542 shares worth approximately $56.66 million.
• Several large investors, including Raymond James Financial Inc. and Aberdeen Group plc, also raised their stakes in Atmos Energy during the same quarter.
• Atmos Energy's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $1.16, slightly missing analyst expectations, and it announced a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share with a yield of 2.1%.

Partners Group Holding AG grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 32.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 366,542 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 89,630 shares during the period. Atmos Energy comprises about 2.4% of Partners Group Holding AG's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Partners Group Holding AG owned about 0.23% of Atmos Energy worth $56,660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 211.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,160,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,136,463,000 after acquiring an additional 5,543,451 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake 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 buying an additional 1,287,325 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake 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 buying an additional 1,017,575 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,791,335 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,213,925,000 after buying an additional 424,235 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $65,333,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on ATO. Citigroup upped their price target on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Mizuho downgraded Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $159.00 price target (up previously from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays cut their price target on Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Argus upgraded Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $158.27.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ATO traded up $1.6970 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $165.7170. 657,231 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 924,227. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $156.55 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.76, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.37. Atmos Energy Corporation has a one year low of $128.12 and a one year high of $167.45.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $838.77 million for 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 period in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.