Dean Investment Associates LLC Trims Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Dean Investment Associates LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 2.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 24,072 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 695 shares during the quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $3,339,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,745,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,906,618,000 after acquiring an additional 1,341,640 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,800,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,498,153,000 after acquiring an additional 362,594 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 2,212.0% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 291,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,446,000 after acquiring an additional 278,961 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,221,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1,532.1% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 218,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,511,000 after acquiring an additional 205,300 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on ATO. Barclays upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Mizuho boosted 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. StockNews.com raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.69.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

ATO stock opened at $141.96 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $22.06 billion, a PE ratio of 20.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.70. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.46 and a 12-month high of $152.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $143.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $130.91.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This is a boost from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.45%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 50.66%.

Insider Activity at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director Edward Geiser purchased 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $377,003.78. This represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.