StockNews.com Upgrades Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) to “Hold”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Thursday.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on ATO. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lifted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $143.94.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $144.19 on Thursday. Atmos Energy has a 1 year low of $110.40 and a 1 year high of $145.27. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $138.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $126.87. The company has a market cap of $22.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.99, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.92% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 7.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 25th will be given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This is a boost from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.87%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atmos Energy

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,472,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,314,641,000 after acquiring an additional 127,199 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,575,191 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $187,243,000 after purchasing an additional 83,661 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 1.3% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,550,227 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $180,834,000 after purchasing an additional 19,981 shares in the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 4.6% in the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,521,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $177,506,000 after purchasing an additional 66,345 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sfmg LLC raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 0.9% in the second quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 1,059,221 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $123,558,000 after purchasing an additional 9,253 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Atmos Energy

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.