W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 16.7% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 7,625 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,093 shares during the period. W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,175,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ATO. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,791,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,213,925,000 after buying an additional 424,235 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,073,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $625,180,000 after acquiring an additional 63,166 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 24.3% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,317,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $203,659,000 after acquiring an additional 257,341 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,011,409 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $155,868,000 after acquiring an additional 86,472 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 3.8% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 950,573 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $146,940,000 after purchasing an additional 34,878 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

NYSE:ATO traded up $0.72 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $178.55. 129,988 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 935,188. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $136.05 and a 12-month high of $180.65. The company has a market cap of $28.66 billion, a PE ratio of 24.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.73. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $171.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $162.55.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $754.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $726.97 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.150-8.350 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 24th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. This is a boost from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 24th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have issued reports on ATO. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $182.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $163.00 price objective (down from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $167.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Cowen started coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays set a $175.00 price objective on Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $170.44.

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.