Prudential PLC Has $615,000 Position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)

Prudential PLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 102.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,017 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $615,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in ATO. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $233,000. Mariner LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 40.0% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 45,900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,392,000 after acquiring an additional 13,103 shares during the last quarter. Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,264,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 33,138 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,615,000 after acquiring an additional 2,213 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 194.3% during the 4th quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 12,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,755,000 after acquiring an additional 8,319 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

ATO opened at $165.18 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $26.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.69. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $128.12 and a 52-week high of $167.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $156.05 and its 200-day moving average is $153.50.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $838.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.97 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.00% and a net margin of 25.05%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ATO shares. Argus raised Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $159.00 price objective (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $158.27.

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.