Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases New Shares in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 6,741 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,161,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $9,146,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $60,000. Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $15,269,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $720,212,000. Finally, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $13,968,000. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director William James Ware bought 300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $81,783.92. This trade represents a 159.57% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on ATO shares. Argus dropped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $182.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $193.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $196.00 to $198.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $187.73.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

NYSE:ATO opened at $166.77 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.18 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $160.10 and a 1-year high of $192.51. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $173.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $178.23. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $879.06 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $900.82 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 28.50% and a return on equity of 9.67%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 24th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 24th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.56%.

Atmos Energy Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE: ATO) is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos’s core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company’s services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.