State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Sells 35,771 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lowered its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 49.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 36,321 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 35,771 shares during the quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $5,058,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 72.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 23.0% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 598 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho lowered shares of Atmos Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $154.28.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Atmos Energy stock traded up $0.05 on Thursday, reaching $160.68. 214,056 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 931,107. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $152.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $146.06. The stock has a market cap of $25.50 billion, a PE ratio of 22.90, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.97 and a twelve month high of $161.62.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.17%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.57%.

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.