Capital Investment Advisors LLC Invests $211,000 in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Capital Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATOFree Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 1,365 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $211,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 72.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. South Plains Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Bank of New Hampshire purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.98, for a total value of $2,264,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 172,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $26,063,979.36. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ATO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho downgraded Atmos Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $156.35.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on ATO

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.3%

NYSE:ATO opened at $152.51 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.22 billion, a PE ratio of 21.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.71. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $113.46 and a 52 week high of $167.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $155.71 and a 200-day moving average of $148.82.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATOGet Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 25.90%. The firm’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.85 EPS. Analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 48.33%.

About Atmos Energy

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO)

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