Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Now Covered by UBS Group

UBS Group started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued a neutral rating and a $124.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $131.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, December 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $124.33.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:ATO opened at $113.06 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $114.92 and its 200-day moving average is $113.45. Atmos Energy has a 52-week low of $101.00 and a 52-week high of $125.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.44. The company has a market cap of $17.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.95, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.09 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 23.43%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.91 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $1,746,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 186,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,701,039.94. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atmos Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Main Street Group LTD acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 984.6% in the third quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 152 shares during the period. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

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.