Quest Partners LLC Acquires 5,351 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 66.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,410 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,351 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,860,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. PFS Partners LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 75.6% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 248.5% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 805 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 158.3% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 997 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price 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. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $143.94.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ATO traded down $0.19 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $146.78. The company had a trading volume of 880,708 shares, compared to its average volume of 878,156. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.73. Atmos Energy Co. has a one year low of $110.46 and a one year high of $148.39. The firm has a market cap of $22.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.37, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.68. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $139.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $128.10.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 25th will be given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This is a boost from Atmos Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is currently 46.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director Edward Geiser purchased 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at $377,003.78. This trade represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company 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.