Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Shares Newly Bought by Sapient Capital LLC

Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 36,511 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,712,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westwind Capital bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $893,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 65.5% in the 3rd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 6,509 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,018,000 after buying an additional 2,575 shares during the last quarter. Adams Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $9,766,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new position in Atmos Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $22,317,000. Finally, Aletheian Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $97,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director William Ware purchased 300 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,783.92. This represents a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of ATO stock traded up $1.47 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $160.68. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,138,024 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,234,984. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.57. Atmos Energy Corporation has a one year low of $154.72 and a one year high of $192.51. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $174.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 28.50%.The company had revenue of $879.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $900.82 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.47 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 24th were given a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ATO shares. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $173.00 to $167.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. Argus reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $180.00 target price (down from $198.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, September 11th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $183.58.

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.