Denali Advisors LLC Buys New Position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Denali Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 2,010 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $280,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,217 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 9,865 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,374,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares in the last quarter. Trust Point Inc. increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 2,567 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $320,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 2,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on ATO. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho raised their price target on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Argus raised Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com downgraded Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.75.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of Atmos Energy stock opened at $149.98 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.97 and a twelve month high of $152.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.36, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.72. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $142.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $140.25.

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

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is currently 49.57%.

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.