Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.03 EPS

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03, Zacks reports. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.83% and a net margin of 25.04%.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE ATO traded down $0.83 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $142.57. 1,060,784 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 910,645. Atmos Energy has a 12-month low of $110.46 and a 12-month high of $152.65. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $141.86 and a 200 day moving average of $137.82. The company has a market cap of $22.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ATO. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Argus raised Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Mizuho upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Edward Geiser acquired 2,500 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $144.89 per share, for a total transaction of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $377,003.78. This trade represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.