Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Acquired by Venturi Wealth Management LLC

Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 15.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,431 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,530,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $1,906,618,000 after buying an additional 1,341,640 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,800,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,498,153,000 after buying an additional 362,594 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 34,555 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 636,660 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $88,311,000 after purchasing an additional 13,714 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 560,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $77,788,000 after purchasing an additional 73,007 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on ATO shares. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com cut Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.75.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Atmos Energy stock opened at $148.12 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $23.51 billion, a PE ratio of 21.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $141.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.28. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.97 and a 12-month high of $152.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 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%. As a group, analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 49.57%.

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.