Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Sold by Earnest Partners LLC

Earnest Partners LLC reduced its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 0.6% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 435,932 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,702 shares during the quarter. Earnest Partners LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $50,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 24.4% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 72,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,452,000 after purchasing an additional 14,294 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 40.7% during the 4th quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 24,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,862,000 after purchasing an additional 7,141 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 32.1% in the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 9,123 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,057,000 after buying an additional 2,217 shares in the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $206,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 4,446 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $515,000 after buying an additional 1,118 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.1 %

Atmos Energy stock opened at $136.77 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $101.00 and a 52 week high of $138.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $130.74 and a 200 day moving average price of $121.60.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.94 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.78 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a $0.805 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 48.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on ATO shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, September 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $144.00 price target on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $137.71.

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.