Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Stake Decreased by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 2.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 389,961 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 11,640 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 0.23% of Atmos Energy worth $61,005,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 627.3% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 160 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Downshift Financial LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 2,514.3% in the third quarter. Downshift Financial LLC now owns 183 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of ATO opened at $173.72 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $29.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.79, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.56. Atmos Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $154.72 and a fifty-two week 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 firm’s 50 day moving average price is $164.43 and its 200 day moving average price is $174.16.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $879.06 million during 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 quarter last year, the company posted $1.16 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director William Ware acquired 300 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the purchase, the director owned 488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,783.92. The trade was a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, July 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $179.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Barclays cut their price objective on Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Argus reissued a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 target price on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Atmos Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $198.00 to $180.00 in a report on Friday, September 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $183.27.

Atmos Energy Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) is a regulated natural gas utility that distributes natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers. The company also operates natural gas pipeline and storage assets, supporting the transportation and management of gas within its service areas.

Atmos Energy serves more than 3 million distribution customers across eight states, including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, Kansas and Colorado. Its distribution operations include a large network of natural gas pipelines and related infrastructure, while its pipeline and storage business provides transportation and storage services primarily in Texas and Mississippi.

The company traces its history to 1906 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.