Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Stake Boosted by TIAA Trust National Association

TIAA Trust National Association increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 2.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,612 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the quarter. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $429,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ATO. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 200.0% during the first quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its position in Atmos Energy by 187.6% in the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 463 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, April 12th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho boosted their price target on Atmos Energy from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised Atmos Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $130.00 to $132.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. StockNews.com lowered Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Atmos Energy from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $128.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Diana J. Walters sold 400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.00, for a total transaction of $47,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,551 shares in the company, valued at $419,018. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:ATO traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $122.95. 1,031,875 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 881,717. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.67. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $116.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $115.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $101.00 and a 12 month high of $125.38.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.54 billion. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 24.65% and a return on equity of 9.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.48 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 28th were given a $0.805 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.62%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.28%.

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.