Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Shares Newly Acquired by GoalVest Advisory LLC

GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 6,103 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $955,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ATO. Compound Planning Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 1,716 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $317,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 8,153 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,506,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 39.1% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 235 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 6.3% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,119 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $193,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amarillo National Bank boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 0.3% during the first quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 28,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,291,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Argus cut their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $188.00 to $179.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $173.00 to $167.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $183.58.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William Ware bought 300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $81,783.92. The trade was a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.43% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:ATO traded up $0.59 on Friday, hitting $156.97. 240,363 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,228,357. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.57. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $154.72 and a 12 month high of $192.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $166.95 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $174.79.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $879.06 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $900.82 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 28.50% and a return on equity of 9.67%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 47.56%.

Atmos Energy Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation is a regulated natural gas distribution and pipeline company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The company delivers natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and institutional customers and is one of the largest natural gas distributors in the United States.

Atmos Energy operates through two primary businesses: natural gas distribution and pipeline and storage operations. Its distribution activities include acquiring, transporting, storing and delivering natural gas, while its pipeline operations provide transportation and storage services and support the company’s distribution network.

The company serves customers across eight states, including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia.