Little House Capital LLC Increases Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Little House Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 68.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,186 shares during the quarter. Little House Capital LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $1,088,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 200.0% during the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 467.0% in the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 248.5% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 805 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $96,000 after buying an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com cut Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.94.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Atmos Energy stock traded down $0.55 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $142.71. 174,450 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 874,949. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $134.92 and its 200-day moving average is $124.29. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $105.44 and a 12 month high of $144.32. The stock has a market cap of $21.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.48, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a $0.805 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 48.28%.

Atmos Energy 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.