6,103 Shares in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Bought by GoalVest Advisory LLC

GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 6,103 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $955,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ATO. Private Client Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $91,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 179.4% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 3,126 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $489,000 after buying an additional 2,007 shares in the last quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $87,000. Montecito Bank & Trust bought a new stake in Atmos Energy during the third quarter valued at about $473,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Atmos Energy during the third quarter valued at about $128,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director William Ware bought 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,783.92. The trade was a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of ATO traded up $0.59 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $156.97. 240,363 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,228,357. The stock has a market cap of $26.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.66, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $166.95 and a 200-day moving average of $174.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.81. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $154.72 and a 52 week high of $192.51.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 28.50%.The firm had revenue of $879.06 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $900.82 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 24th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 47.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $190.00 to $179.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price (down from $198.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Barclays decreased their target price on Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Atmos Energy from $173.00 to $167.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $183.58.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation is a regulated natural gas distribution and pipeline company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The company delivers natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and institutional customers and is one of the largest natural gas distributors in the United States.

Atmos Energy operates through two primary businesses: natural gas distribution and pipeline and storage operations. Its distribution activities include acquiring, transporting, storing and delivering natural gas, while its pipeline operations provide transportation and storage services and support the company’s distribution network.

The company serves customers across eight states, including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia.