Vest Financial LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Vest Financial LLC grew its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 397,828 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 10,367 shares during the period. Atmos Energy accounts for approximately 1.0% of Vest Financial LLC's holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. Vest Financial LLC owned approximately 0.26% of Atmos Energy worth $55,406,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. PFS Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $69,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $79,000. Finally, Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $125,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE ATO traded up $1.23 on Wednesday, hitting $146.30. 897,415 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 898,626. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.56. The business's fifty day moving average is $141.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.81. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $110.46 and a 12 month high of $152.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.84, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.72.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on ATO shares. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $148.75.

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.