Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Hits New 1-Year High After Strong Earnings

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $180.35 and last traded at $178.9980, with a volume of 35700 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $172.59.

The utilities provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.06. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. The firm had revenue of $754.64 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $726.97 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.150-8.350 EPS.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 24th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 24th. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ATO. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up from $182.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, October 16th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. UBS Group restated 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. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $163.00 price objective (down from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $170.44.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atmos Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ATO. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $282,487,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 94.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,652,267 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $562,851,000 after purchasing an additional 1,778,653 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 220.1% in the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 720,956 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $111,107,000 after purchasing an additional 495,712 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,791,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,213,925,000 after purchasing an additional 424,235 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter worth $65,333,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.77 billion, a PE ratio of 24.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.73. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $170.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $161.91.

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.