Amalgamated Bank Has $4.31 Million Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Amalgamated Bank raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 30,960 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $4,312,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 10.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,745,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,906,618,000 after buying an additional 1,341,640 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,800,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,498,153,000 after acquiring an additional 362,594 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 885,950 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $122,890,000 after acquiring an additional 34,555 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 2.2% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 636,660 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $88,311,000 after acquiring an additional 13,714 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 15.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 560,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $77,788,000 after acquiring an additional 73,007 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $152.30 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $24.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.70, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.97 and a 12-month high of $152.65. The business’s 50 day moving average is $142.85 and its 200 day moving average is $140.31.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 25.90%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 49.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ATO has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 target price for the company. Argus upgraded Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.75.

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.