Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Acquired by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 11.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 370,918 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 39,027 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.25% of Atmos Energy worth $51,450,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 15.4% in the first quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 5,196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $618,000 after purchasing an additional 693 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 37,095 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,409,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.7% in the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 33,293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,958,000 after acquiring an additional 566 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.6% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 27,828 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,188,000 after acquiring an additional 1,227 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 17.0% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 212,190 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,223,000 after purchasing an additional 30,791 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on ATO shares. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.94.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $138.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $21.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.68. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $137.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.04. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $107.82 and a 52 week high of $144.32.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 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 analysts’ expectations of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.94 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a dividend of $0.805 per share. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 47.28%.

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.