Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC Acquires New Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 11,315 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,570,000. Atmos Energy accounts for approximately 1.3% of Nicholson Wealth Management Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.7% in the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 3,049 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $362,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 467.0% during the first quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 6.0% in the first quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 27,385 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,255,000 after buying an additional 1,552 shares in the last quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 44.7% during the first quarter. Financial Partners Group LLC now owns 3,245 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $386,000 after buying an additional 1,003 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SteelPeak Wealth LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 99.1% in the 1st quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 16,814 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,999,000 after acquiring an additional 8,367 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE ATO traded down $1.95 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $140.72. The company had a trading volume of 682,074 shares, compared to its average volume of 873,976. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $105.44 and a 52 week high of $144.32. The business's 50-day moving average is $136.25 and its 200-day moving average is $125.08. The stock has a market cap of $21.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a dividend of $0.805 per share. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is 48.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ATO. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a "hold" rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH increased their price target on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $143.94.

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.