Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Increases Position in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 10.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,175,415 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 115,574 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.71% of Atmos Energy worth $217,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,021 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after acquiring an additional 283 shares during the last quarter. Maridea Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $202,000. Colony Family Offices LLC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $210,000. AA Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 8.4% in the first quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,757 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the first quarter worth $1,552,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Atmos Energy stock opened at $174.68 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $176.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $176.50. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $149.98 and a 52 week high of $192.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.16 billion, a PE ratio of 21.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.60.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 27.58% and a return on equity of 9.59%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.03 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 49.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ATO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $167.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $190.00 price objective on Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen cut Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, June 19th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on Atmos Energy from $192.00 to $184.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $182.60.

Atmos Energy Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE: ATO) is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos’s core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company’s services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.