Xponance Inc. Lowers Position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Xponance Inc. decreased its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,137 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 278 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ATO. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Atmos Energy by 2.9% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,347,371 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,049,467,000 after purchasing an additional 538,578 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 5.3% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,990,424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $952,356,000 after buying an additional 452,247 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 47.2% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,191,850 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $126,253,000 after buying an additional 382,167 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 168.1% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 511,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $54,196,000 after buying an additional 320,817 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the third quarter valued at about $28,228,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.8 %

NYSE ATO opened at $118.08 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.81 billion, a PE ratio of 18.74, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $101.00 and a 1 year high of $125.28. The business’s 50-day moving average is $115.18 and its 200 day moving average is $113.80.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.09 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 23.43%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.91 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were given a dividend of $0.805 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.73%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 51.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ATO. StockNews.com raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays raised their price objective on Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 price objective on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $124.33.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $1,746,900.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 186,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,701,039.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Profile

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.