O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 15.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,238 shares during the period. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ATO. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,367,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,836,526,000 after purchasing an additional 282,156 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth $206,538,000. Sfmg LLC raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 1,059,206 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $147,516,000 after acquiring an additional 7,501 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 915,695 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $127,529,000 after purchasing an additional 29,745 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 818,991 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $114,266,000 after purchasing an additional 17,004 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 4.9 %

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $147.64 on Monday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $148.22 and a 200 day moving average price of $143.88. The stock has a market cap of $23.43 billion, a PE ratio of 21.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $110.97 and a 52-week high of $157.62.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. Equities research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ATO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price objective for the company. Argus raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $149.15.

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.