Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Sold by Everett Harris & Co. CA

Everett Harris & Co. CA cut its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 12.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,422 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 500 shares during the period. Everett Harris & Co. CA’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $397,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Portside Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $285,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Syntax Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.6% in the third quarter. Syntax Advisors LLC now owns 2,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.0% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 10,338 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,095,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.7% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 6,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $634,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 11,354 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,275,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ATO. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $131.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 14th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.40.

Insider Activity at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $1,746,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 186,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,701,039.94. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Atmos Energy stock traded up $0.58 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $118.84. 1,265,423 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 862,112. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $101.00 and a 12-month high of $125.28. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $114.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.77, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a net margin of 23.43% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.91 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.11%.

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.