Short Interest in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) Decreases By 12.8%

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 4,475,871 shares, a decline of 12.8% from the December 31st total of 5,135,651 shares. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 924,594 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days. Based on an average trading volume of 924,594 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.8 days. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on ATO. UBS Group upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $159.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $185.00 price target (up previously from $182.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $163.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $174.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sean Donohue sold 450 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.15, for a total value of $77,017.50. Following the sale, the director owned 877 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $150,098.55. This represents a 33.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.43% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atmos Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Garner Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 85.9% during the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 158 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Princeton Global Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 270.2% in the fourth quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 174 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.1%

Atmos Energy stock opened at $166.44 on Tuesday. Atmos Energy has a twelve month low of $140.69 and a twelve month high of $180.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market cap of $26.92 billion, a PE ratio of 22.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $168.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $168.48.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 14th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $737.48 million for the quarter. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.49% and a return on equity of 9.07%. On average, research analysts predict that Atmos Energy will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a positive change from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.40%.

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.