Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC Buys 102,484 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 13,309.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 103,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 102,484 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.06% of Atmos Energy worth $15,912,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in Atmos Energy by 141.2% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its position in Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 11,200.0% during the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 24.0% in the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $59,000. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ATO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $185.00 price target (up from $182.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 18th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $159.00 price objective (up previously from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $170.56.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $175.94 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $28.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.17, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.73. Atmos Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $136.05 and a fifty-two week high of $180.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $173.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $163.55.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 14th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $737.48 million for the quarter. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. Analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 24th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.40%.

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.