Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 71,024 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,831 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $12,235,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $2,624,975,000. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $720,212,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $431,677,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $331,426,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $276,558,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William James Ware acquired 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 488 shares in the company, valued at $81,783.92. The trade was a 159.57% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Atmos Energy stock opened at $166.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $28.11 billion, a PE ratio of 19.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $160.10 and a 52 week high of $192.51. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $173.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $178.17.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $879.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $900.82 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 28.50%.During the same period last year, the company earned $1.16 EPS. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 24th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 24th. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.56%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $196.00 to $198.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Citigroup raised their target price on Atmos Energy from $182.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $188.00 to $179.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $187.73.

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.