Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC Has $606,000 Stock Position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 6.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,348 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $606,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 17.9% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 917 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $127,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Atmos Energy by 50.8% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 992 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on ATO. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH increased their target price on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Edward Geiser purchased 2,500 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,602 shares in the company, valued at $377,003.78. This trade represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.0 %

NYSE ATO opened at $139.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $110.46 and a 12 month high of $152.65. The company has a market capitalization of $21.69 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.71. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $142.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $136.96.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th were given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.49%. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.66%.

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.