Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Stock Position Cut by SG Americas Securities LLC

SG Americas Securities LLC reduced its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 39.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,337 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,502 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $325,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Atria Investments Inc lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 1.3% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 31,399 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,355,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. now owns 8,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,114,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the third quarter valued at $1,897,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 11.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 58,229 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,077,000 after acquiring an additional 5,884 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Edward Geiser acquired 2,500 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $377,003.78. This trade represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $142.57 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $141.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $138.11. The company has a market cap of $22.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.72. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.46 and a 12-month high of $152.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.83% and a net margin of 25.04%. Equities analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ATO shares. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price objective for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.75.

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.