Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Bought by Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors

Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors raised its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,969 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 204 shares during the quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors’ holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $344,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 984.6% in the 3rd quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 107.0% during the 3rd quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. RVW Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 57.5% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Ronald Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 80.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $124.33.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Atmos Energy stock opened at $113.06 on Tuesday. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $101.00 and a 52 week high of $125.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $114.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $113.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.05 billion, a PE ratio of 17.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 23.43% and a return on equity of 8.62%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.91 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $0.805 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $1,746,900.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 186,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,701,039.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Atmos Energy Company 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.