Natixis Acquires Shares of 97,529 Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Natixis acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 97,529 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $13,583,000. Natixis owned approximately 0.06% of Atmos Energy as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ATO. Norinchukin Bank The lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 7,123 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $992,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new stake in Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $740,000. Capital International Inc. CA grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Inc. CA now owns 282,458 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,338,000 after purchasing an additional 36,595 shares in the last quarter. Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $22,566,000. Finally, Capital International Investors raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 5,543,451 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.9 %

Atmos Energy stock traded down $1.43 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $158.25. The stock had a trading volume of 344,023 shares, compared to its average volume of 923,487. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $151.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $145.49. The company has a market capitalization of $25.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.52, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $110.97 and a 12 month high of $161.49.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. StockNews.com cut Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $154.39.

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.