Prudential Financial Inc. Has $14.25 Million Holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 92,470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,775 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned 0.06% of Atmos Energy worth $14,251,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ATO. IFP Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.2% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,086 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $325,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. SouthState Corp boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.9% in the first quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 1,447 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in Atmos Energy by 3.8% during the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Atmos Energy by 24.0% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 1,181 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $182,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 1.5%

ATO opened at $175.94 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $28.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.17, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company’s 50 day moving average is $173.49 and its 200-day moving average is $163.55. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $136.05 and a 1-year high of $180.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 14th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (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%. Equities research analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date 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%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ATO. Mizuho upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $163.00 price target (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $182.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. TD Cowen raised shares of Atmos Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $170.56.

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.