Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Receives $149.15 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the ten brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $149.15.

ATO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $156.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Argus upgraded Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th.

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Atmos Energy Trading Up 1.2 %

Atmos Energy stock traded up $1.76 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $150.10. 371,732 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 906,653. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $146.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.95. Atmos Energy has a fifty-two week low of $110.97 and a fifty-two week high of $154.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.38, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atmos Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ATO. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 211.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,160,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,136,463,000 after buying an additional 5,543,451 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $206,538,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,745,352 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,906,618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,341,640 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 541.4% in the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,525,116 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $212,403,000 after purchasing an additional 1,287,325 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 146.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,713,421 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $238,628,000 after purchasing an additional 1,017,575 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company's stock.

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.