Phillips Financial Management LLC Sells 990 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Phillips Financial Management LLC cut its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 3.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,090 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 990 shares during the quarter. Phillips Financial Management LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $3,342,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. PFS Partners LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 248.5% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 805 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 50.8% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 992 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $138,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Edward Geiser bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $144.89 per share, for a total transaction of $362,225.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $377,003.78. The trade was a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Atmos Energy stock opened at $144.89 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $22.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $139.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $127.84. Atmos Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $110.46 and a fifty-two week high of $148.39.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 46.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ATO shares. StockNews.com upgraded Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH increased their price objective on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $143.94.

Atmos Energy 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.