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

New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 347,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,852 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.23% of Atmos Energy worth $40,223,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Portside Wealth Group LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Syntax Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.6% in the third quarter. Syntax Advisors LLC now owns 2,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.0% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 10,338 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,095,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 9.2% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,258 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 57.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE ATO opened at $118.66 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $115.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.44. Atmos Energy Co. has a one year low of $101.00 and a one year high of $125.28. The firm has a market cap of $17.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.09 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a net margin of 23.43% and a return on equity of 8.62%. The business had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.91 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 51.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $1,746,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 186,339 shares in the company, valued at $21,701,039.94. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, April 12th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $124.33.

Atmos Energy Company 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.