Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Price Target Raised to $166.00

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) had its price target increased by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $164.00 to $166.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 5.49% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Argus raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.39.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE:ATO opened at $157.37 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $150.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $144.81. Atmos Energy has a 12 month low of $110.97 and a 12 month high of $159.20. The company has a market capitalization of $24.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.42, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Atmos Energy by 1.4% in the 4th 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. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 211.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,160,144 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,136,463,000 after acquiring an additional 5,543,451 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,806,449 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $528,760,000 after acquiring an additional 107,700 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,107,267 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $432,749,000 after acquiring an additional 223,809 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,078,424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $428,732,000 after purchasing an additional 58,391 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Company 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.