Trust Co. of Vermont Sells 202 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Trust Co. of Vermont cut its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,784 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 202 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,124,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ATO. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 191.2% in the 1st quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in Atmos Energy by 141.2% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 379.7% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New Hampshire acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the first quarter valued at $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on ATO. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, August 17th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $162.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Argus set a $172.00 price objective on Atmos Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $159.00 target price (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $162.50.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

ATO opened at $169.29 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $163.90 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.17 billion, a PE ratio of 23.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.74. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $136.05 and a 52 week high of $171.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.37.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. The company had revenue of $838.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.97 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 25th were paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 47.80%.

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.