XTX Topco Ltd Has $1.91 Million Stock Position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

XTX Topco Ltd raised its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 38.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,716 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 3,837 shares during the quarter. XTX Topco Ltd's holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,910,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,217 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $309,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 9,865 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,374,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 2,567 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $358,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 2,921 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $407,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 2,524 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ATO. Argus raised Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Atmos Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $154.39.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Atmos Energy stock traded up $1.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $157.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 904,405 shares, compared to its average volume of 910,066. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.97 and a twelve month high of $159.20. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $150.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $144.81. The firm has a market cap of $24.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.42, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 25.90%. Sell-side analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy's payout ratio is 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.