State of Alaska Department of Revenue Sells 5,050 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lowered its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 17.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,889 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,050 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $3,313,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Amarillo National Bank grew its position in Atmos Energy by 7.9% in the 3rd quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 33,821 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,691,000 after acquiring an additional 2,468 shares during the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in Atmos Energy by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 356,721 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $49,481,000 after acquiring an additional 2,055 shares during the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden grew its position in Atmos Energy by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 52,800 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,324,000 after acquiring an additional 7,800 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in Atmos Energy by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 18,091 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,493,000 after acquiring an additional 3,071 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its position in Atmos Energy by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 8,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,207,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $139.62 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.68. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $106.69 and a 1-year high of $144.32. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $136.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $125.58.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.94 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ATO has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.94.

Atmos Energy 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.