Principal Financial Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 4.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 507,404 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,175 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.31% of Atmos Energy worth $93,728,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ATO. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $233,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 10.8% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 3,168 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $490,000 after acquiring an additional 308 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $2,676,000 after purchasing an additional 1,331 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of 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 grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 43.9% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 13,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,073,000 after purchasing an additional 4,088 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on ATO. Truist Financial cut their price objective on Atmos Energy from $195.00 to $187.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $190.00 price target on Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. 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 report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $193.00 to $196.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.33.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $175.07 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.22 billion, a PE ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.60. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $153.84 and a 1 year high of $192.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $174.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.28.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.47 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 27.58% and a return on equity of 9.59%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.03 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.45 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 26th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 49.14%.

Atmos Energy Company Profile

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.