RD Lewis Holdings Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

RD Lewis Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 2.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,540 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 359 shares during the quarter. Atmos Energy makes up approximately 2.1% of RD Lewis Holdings Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. RD Lewis Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,041,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ATO. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 424,235 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.6% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,073,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $625,180,000 after purchasing an additional 63,166 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 23.6% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,899,283 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $292,699,000 after purchasing an additional 362,894 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted 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 valued at $203,659,000 after purchasing an additional 257,341 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,011,409 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $155,868,000 after purchasing an additional 86,472 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ATO. TD Cowen raised Atmos Energy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Barclays set a $175.00 price target on Atmos Energy in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $159.00 price objective (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $182.00 target price on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Thursday. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a “neutral” rating and set a $163.00 price target (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $170.56.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.1%

Atmos Energy stock opened at $174.94 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $172.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $163.27. The company has a market capitalization of $28.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.73. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $136.05 and a 52 week high of $180.65. 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 (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 14th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $737.48 million during the quarter. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 24th. This is a positive change from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 53.40%.

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.