9,822 Shares in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Bought by AGP Franklin LLC

AGP Franklin LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 9,822 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,368,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 72.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in Atmos Energy by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 598 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ATO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, March 31st. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $154.39.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.7 %

ATO stock traded up $1.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $157.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 904,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 910,066. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $150.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $144.81. The stock has a market cap of $24.98 billion, a PE ratio of 22.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $110.97 and a 52 week high of $159.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 25.90%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is 49.57%.

Atmos Energy Company 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.