HighTower Advisors LLC Sells 3,998 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 6.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 53,701 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,998 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $9,251,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $233,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 10.8% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,168 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $490,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 8.3% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,312 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,676,000 after purchasing an additional 1,331 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 8.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,117 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $482,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Woodline Partners LP grew its position in Atmos Energy by 43.9% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 13,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,073,000 after purchasing an additional 4,088 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director William Ware acquired 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $81,783.92. This trade represents a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.43% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, August 28th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $193.00 to $196.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $187.73.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 1.0%

NYSE ATO opened at $164.86 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $27.86 billion, a PE ratio of 19.60, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. 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 Corporation has a 12 month low of $160.10 and a 12 month high of $192.51. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $172.29 and a 200-day moving average of $177.53.

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

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 24th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 24th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is currently 47.56%.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) is a regulated natural gas distribution and pipeline company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Through its utility operations, the company delivers natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers, with services focused on safe and reliable energy delivery.

Atmos Energy serves customers across eight states: Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Its operations include local natural gas distribution as well as pipeline transportation and storage activities, primarily through its Atmos Pipeline-Texas business.

The company traces its roots to 1906 and has expanded over time through growth and acquisitions in the natural gas industry.