StockNews.com Lowers Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) to Sell

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

ATO has been the subject of several other reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $140.69.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:ATO traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $139.12. 611,099 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 892,290. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $131.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $122.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market cap of $20.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.68. Atmos Energy has a fifty-two week low of $101.00 and a fifty-two week high of $139.63.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Atmos Energy will post 6.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 200.0% in the first quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $37,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 467.0% during the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new position in Atmos Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $89,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

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.