Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. Sells 13,420 Shares of Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 90.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,454 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 13,420 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $248,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its position in Atmos Energy by 141.2% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $46,000. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 11,200.0% during the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 24.0% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Sean Donohue sold 450 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $171.15, for a total transaction of $77,017.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 877 shares in the company, valued at $150,098.55. This trade represents a 33.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 1.6%

NYSE:ATO opened at $167.94 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $174.07 and its 200 day moving average is $165.01. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $136.05 and a 12 month high of $180.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.15 billion, a PE ratio of 22.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 14th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $737.48 million during the quarter. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.07% and a net margin of 25.49%. Sell-side analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 24th were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on ATO shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $172.00 price objective (down from $182.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, December 8th. Barclays set a $175.00 price objective on Atmos Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, TD Cowen raised Atmos Energy to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $170.56.

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.