Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Grows Position in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Key Points

• Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation by 7.9%, purchasing an additional 4,648 shares, bringing their total to 63,781 shares valued at approximately $9.82 million.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, representing a 2.1% dividend yield, with payment scheduled for September 8th.
• Atmos Energy's earnings report showed a miss on EPS consensus estimates, reporting $1.16 compared to expectations of $1.17, with revenue of $838.77 million for the quarter.

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 7.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,781 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,648 shares during the quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $9,815,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 191.2% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 166 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Atmos Energy by 379.7% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 331 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the period. South Plains Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $51,000. Finally, Bank of New Hampshire purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley set a $156.00 target price on Atmos Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Wall Street Zen raised Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday. Barclays dropped their target price on Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $159.00 price objective (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $158.27.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.8%

Atmos Energy stock traded down $1.40 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $163.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 139,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 974,717. The company has a market cap of $26.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.54, a P/E/G 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. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $153.66. Atmos Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $128.12 and a fifty-two week high of $167.45.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 business had revenue of $838.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.00% and a net margin of 25.05%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.80%.

Atmos Energy Company 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.