State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Sells 1,817 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D reduced its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation by 4.6%, selling 1,817 shares and now holding 38,038 shares valued at approximately $5.88 million.
• Atmos Energy's quarterly earnings showed an EPS of $1.16, slightly below analysts' expectations, with revenue reported at $838.77 million, which was also less than anticipated.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.87 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.1%, scheduled to be paid on September 8th.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lessened its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 4.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 38,038 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 1,817 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $5,880,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 424,235 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,078,424 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $428,732,000 after acquiring an additional 58,391 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,017,575 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,639,073 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $228,274,000 after acquiring an additional 233,790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,287,325 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ATO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho lowered shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $159.00 target price (up previously from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $163.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $158.27.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.7%

NYSE:ATO traded up $1.2420 on Friday, hitting $168.0320. The stock had a trading volume of 719,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 958,277. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $26.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.11 and a beta of 0.69. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $128.12 and a 1 year high of $168.86. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $157.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $154.46.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $838.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. Analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

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