Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Several other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho raised their price objective on Atmos Energy from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Barclays raised their price target on Atmos Energy from $165.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Atmos Energy to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $163.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $174.33.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $171.44 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.75. Atmos Energy has a 52 week low of $140.85 and a 52 week high of $180.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $168.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $168.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $2.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.67% and a return on equity of 9.20%. The company had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.21 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.23 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.150-8.350 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director Sean Donohue sold 450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.15, for a total transaction of $77,017.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $150,098.55. The trade was a 33.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atmos Energy

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Garner Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 85.9% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 158 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the last quarter. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE: ATO) is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos’s core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company’s services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.