AE Wealth Management LLC Sells 1,664 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

AE Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO – Get Rating) by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,270 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,664 shares during the quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,962,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,026,815,000 after purchasing an additional 547,260 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 5.1% in the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,772,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,287,188,000 after acquiring an additional 527,261 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 14.9% in the second quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,917,780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $551,284,000 after acquiring an additional 636,809 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.4% in the second quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 4,415,431 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $495,219,000 after acquiring an additional 105,241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 24.0% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,756,708 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $329,399,000 after acquiring an additional 533,372 shares in the last quarter. 91.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $111.62 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $115.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $112.46. The firm has a market cap of $15.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.59. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $97.71 and a 52 week high of $122.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.06. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.61% and a net margin of 18.43%. The firm had revenue of $722.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $659.68 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.37 earnings per share. Atmos Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 5.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 28th were issued a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 25th. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is presently 52.30%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Seaport Res Ptn restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Atmos Energy from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 9th. Credit Suisse Group lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $105.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 14th. Mizuho cut their target price on Atmos Energy from $132.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $123.00 to $132.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $121.71.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, VP Richard M. Thomas sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.37, for a total value of $121,407.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $319,079.67. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Atmos Energy Profile

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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.