Seaport Res Ptn Expects Stronger Earnings for Atmos Energy

Key Points

• Seaport Res Ptn has raised its FY2025 earnings per share estimate for Atmos Energy to $7.27, up from a previous estimate of $7.23, indicating positive growth expectations.
• Atmos Energy reported quarterly earnings of $3.03 per share, exceeding the consensus estimate by $0.11, with revenue up 18.4% year-over-year to $1.95 billion.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.87, representing an annualized dividend yield of 2.23% and a payout ratio of 48.33%.

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) - Equities researchers at Seaport Res Ptn boosted their FY2025 EPS estimates for shares of Atmos Energy in a research note issued to investors on Monday, July 28th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst A. Storozynski now forecasts that the utilities provider will post earnings of $7.27 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $7.23. The consensus estimate for Atmos Energy's current full-year earnings is $7.18 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Atmos Energy's FY2026 earnings at $7.84 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $8.41 EPS.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Argus raised Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $159.00 price objective (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Mizuho downgraded Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $157.14.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:ATO traded down $0.15 on Wednesday, hitting $155.77. The stock had a trading volume of 829,913 shares, compared to its average volume of 602,884. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Atmos Energy has a 52 week low of $126.08 and a 52 week high of $167.45. The business's fifty day moving average is $154.31 and its 200 day moving average is $152.11. The company has a market cap of $24.74 billion, a PE ratio of 21.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.70.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.85 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is 48.33%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.98, for a total transaction of $2,264,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 172,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $26,063,979.36. This trade represents a 7.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.48% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ATO. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Atmos Energy by 2.1% in the first 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. Capital International Investors grew 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 acquiring an additional 5,543,451 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,806,449 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $528,760,000 after acquiring an additional 107,700 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,107,267 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $432,749,000 after acquiring an additional 223,809 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,078,424 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $428,732,000 after purchasing an additional 58,391 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.