Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd Reduces Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,498 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 5,580 shares during the quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $4,230,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. PFS Partners LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 158.3% in the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 997 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lummis Asset Management LP increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 1,128 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $132,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho increased their price target on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $147.69.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.7 %

Atmos Energy stock traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $151.42. 935,359 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 878,394. 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $110.46 and a twelve month high of $152.65. The company has a market cap of $23.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a fifty day moving average of $141.50 and a 200-day moving average of $129.35.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 25th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 25th. This is an increase from Atmos Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is currently 50.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Edward Geiser bought 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $144.89 per share, for a total transaction of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $377,003.78. This trade represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.50% 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.