Ninety One UK Ltd Makes New $28.62 Million Investment in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Ninety One UK Ltd bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 182,963 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $28,623,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ATO. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,624,975,000. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 11.0% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,199,433 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $775,719,000 after acquiring an additional 416,933 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $431,677,000. Amundi raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 40.0% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 1,823,714 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $314,171,000 after acquiring an additional 520,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $276,558,000. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of ATO opened at $163.72 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $27.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.57. Atmos Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $154.72 and a twelve month high of $192.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The company has a 50 day moving average of $164.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $173.20.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $879.06 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 previous year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 24th were given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.62%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director William Ware acquired 300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $167.59 per share, with a total value of $50,277.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,783.92. This trade represents a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.43% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on ATO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 price objective (down from $198.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, September 11th. Truist Financial cut their target price on Atmos Energy from $179.00 to $174.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 28th. Finally, Argus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price target on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $183.00.

Atmos Energy Company 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.