Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Acquired by Wellington Management Group LLP

Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 10.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,745,352 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 1,341,640 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned approximately 8.85% of Atmos Energy worth $1,906,618,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 41.0% in the third quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 32,772 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,546,000 after acquiring an additional 9,532 shares in the last quarter. Wahed Invest LLC raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wahed Invest LLC now owns 3,651 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $506,000 after purchasing an additional 373 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,800,610 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,498,153,000 after purchasing an additional 362,594 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 114.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 15,417 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,139,000 after purchasing an additional 8,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 2,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $319,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on ATO shares. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a "hold" rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $147.69.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE ATO traded down $1.08 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $141.96. The stock had a trading volume of 673,062 shares, compared to its average volume of 874,485. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $143.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $130.83. The company has a market capitalization of $22.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.66, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.70. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $110.46 and a 1-year high of $152.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This is an increase from Atmos Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is currently 50.66%.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director Edward Geiser bought 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $377,003.78. This represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

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.