Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Sold by Cresset Asset Management LLC

Cresset Asset Management LLC lowered its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 12.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 76,424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,865 shares during the quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $10,644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ATO. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. raised its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 348,988 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,604,000 after purchasing an additional 38,459 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 6,029 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $840,000 after purchasing an additional 681 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,319,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $162.13 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $25.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.74. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $153.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $146.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.97 and a 12-month high of $162.90.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Mizuho downgraded Atmos Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $154.28.

About Atmos Energy

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.