Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Receives $129.17 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $128.67.

ATO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Atmos Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $130.00 to $132.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Barclays increased their price target on Atmos Energy from $121.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director Diana J. Walters sold 400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.00, for a total value of $47,200.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,551 shares in the company, valued at $419,018. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Atmos Energy

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 984.6% during the 3rd quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 107.0% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 57.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 200.0% during the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $116.56 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $17.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.67. Atmos Energy has a 12-month low of $101.00 and a 12-month high of $125.28. The business’s 50 day moving average is $116.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $2.85 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.23. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 24.65% and a return on equity of 9.01%. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.48 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Atmos Energy will post 6.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were issued a dividend of $0.805 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 24th. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.76%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.28%.

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.