Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Acquired by Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 24.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 176,878 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 35,190 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $24,477,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Atria Investments Inc raised its position in Atmos Energy by 1.3% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 31,399 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,355,000 after purchasing an additional 402 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 33.3% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. now owns 8,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,897,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its position in 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 acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 11.2% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 58,229 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,077,000 after purchasing an additional 5,884 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho upped their price target on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Argus upgraded 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 assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $148.75.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

ATO stock opened at $146.67 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $141.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $139.09. 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 stock has a market cap of $23.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.89, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.72. Atmos Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $110.97 and a fifty-two week high of $152.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued 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 net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 2.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.