Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Upgraded to “Hold” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Friday morning.

ATO has been the subject of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Atmos Energy from $121.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Friday. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They issued a neutral rating and a $124.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $124.67.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE ATO traded down $2.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $117.18. 3,140,268 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 764,335. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.25. Atmos Energy has a 1-year low of $101.00 and a 1-year high of $125.28. The stock has a market cap of $17.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.57, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $114.54.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued 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. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.01% and a net margin of 24.65%. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.48 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Atmos Energy will post 6.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.805 per share. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 24th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is presently 48.28%.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $1,746,900.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 186,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,701,039.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ATO. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 984.6% in the 3rd quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 107.0% during the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 57.5% during 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 last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 200.0% in the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Atmos Energy

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.