Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Purchased by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 294.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 46,022 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,349 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $6,409,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dunhill Financial LLC grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $69,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth $79,000. Finally, Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth $125,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ATO. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho lifted 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. StockNews.com cut Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. Finally, 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 note on Friday, December 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.75.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE ATO opened at $149.97 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $23.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.36, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.72. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $142.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $140.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $110.97 and a 52 week high of $152.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. Equities research analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 49.57%.

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.