Wakefield Asset Management LLLP Acquires New Position in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Wakefield Asset Management LLLP acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 9,593 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,608,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $233,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,168 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $490,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 8.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 17,312 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,676,000 after acquiring an additional 1,331 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,117 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $482,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the period. Finally, Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in Atmos Energy by 43.9% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 13,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,073,000 after acquiring an additional 4,088 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $176.48 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $185.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $177.02. Atmos Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $149.98 and a twelve month high of $192.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.46 billion, a PE ratio of 21.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.10. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 27.58% and a return on equity of 9.59%. The firm had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.94 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.03 EPS. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 26th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 49.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ATO shares. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. They set a “hold” rating and a $195.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $182.00 to $191.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $167.00 to $184.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $183.50.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE: ATO) is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos’s core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company’s services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.