Bank of Montreal Can Sells 28,237 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Bank of Montreal Can lessened its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 10.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 249,792 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 28,237 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned about 0.16% of Atmos Energy worth $34,789,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ATO. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 72.5% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Keystone Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth $79,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 23.0% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $148.92 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $144.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.21, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $110.97 and a 52-week high of $157.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.56.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (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%. Analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.34%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 49.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. 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 report on Friday, December 20th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.15.

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.