Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Position Increased by SteelPeak Wealth LLC

SteelPeak Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 99.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 16,814 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,367 shares during the period. SteelPeak Wealth LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,999,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ATO. Portside Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 0.4% in the first quarter. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. now owns 24,285 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,887,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 57.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Thomasville National Bank lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 0.9% in the first quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 12,767 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,518,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 11,220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,300,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $121.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Atmos Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $132.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, April 12th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $128.67.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director Diana J. Walters sold 400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.00, for a total transaction of $47,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $419,018. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $116.65 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $116.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $17.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.49, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.67. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $101.00 and a 12 month high of $125.28.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $2.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.62 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.01% and a net margin of 24.65%. The company’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.48 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.78 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were given a dividend of $0.805 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 24th. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is currently 48.28%.

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.