Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Shares Sold by Vest Financial LLC

Vest Financial LLC trimmed its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 14.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 334,708 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 58,254 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $51,582,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ATO. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,791,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,213,925,000 after purchasing an additional 424,235 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $65,333,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 2,713.2% during the 1st quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 305,769 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,266,000 after purchasing an additional 294,900 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 24.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,317,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $203,659,000 after purchasing an additional 257,341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 93.8% during the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 444,464 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $68,705,000 after purchasing an additional 215,157 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $176.45 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $28.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.24, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $136.05 and a 52-week high of $177.83. The business’s 50 day moving average is $166.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $159.00.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $838.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. Research analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th were given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is presently 47.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Barclays set a $175.00 target price on Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $162.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $163.00 price objective (down from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $164.70.

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.