Exchange Traded Concepts LLC Sells 13,567 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lessened its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 6.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 183,313 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 13,567 shares during the period. Atmos Energy comprises about 0.6% of Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $25,427,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 200.0% in the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 467.0% in the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $89,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 75.6% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $139.36 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $21.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 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. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $133.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $123.39. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $105.44 and a 1 year high of $140.04.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $701.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.94 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were given a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is presently 48.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ATO. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.56.

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.