UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Purchases 3,236 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 21.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 17,991 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,236 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,506,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 72.5% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $79,000. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

ATO opened at $152.40 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $110.97 and a 1 year high of $154.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The company has a market capitalization of $24.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $147.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $143.24.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 49.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ATO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price objective on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.15.

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.