Aviva PLC Increases Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Aviva PLC increased its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 36.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 93,245 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 24,892 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC owned about 0.06% of Atmos Energy worth $12,986,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 72.5% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $79,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ATO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They set a "peer perform" rating for the company. Argus raised Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $151.94.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 1.5 %

Atmos Energy stock traded up $2.24 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $151.53. The company had a trading volume of 926,194 shares, compared to its average volume of 904,655. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.43. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.97 and a 12-month high of $157.62. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $149.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $144.39. The firm has a market cap of $24.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.