Mizuho Securities USA LLC Purchases 4,647 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 46.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,713 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,647 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,049,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 888.1% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 13,566 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,889,000 after purchasing an additional 12,193 shares during the period. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS raised its position in Atmos Energy by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 293,367 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $40,857,000 after acquiring an additional 6,197 shares during the period. Sandy Spring Bank boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 7,512 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,046,000 after acquiring an additional 2,111 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 11,208.3% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,357 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $189,000 after acquiring an additional 1,345 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn FI LLC bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $310,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America began coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $156.00 price objective on the stock. Argus raised 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. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. One equities 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $149.15.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ATO traded up $1.46 on Friday, hitting $152.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 858,334 shares, compared to its average volume of 880,141. The company has a market capitalization of $24.19 billion, a PE ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $146.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $143.06. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $110.97 and a 1 year high of $154.55.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last announced its 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.