Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Purchased by Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 4.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 203,619 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,768 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado owned about 0.13% of Atmos Energy worth $23,752,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 200.0% during the first quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 467.0% in the 1st quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $73,000 after buying an additional 509 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new position in Atmos Energy in the first quarter valued at $89,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on ATO. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Atmos Energy from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, September 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $144.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.71.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $136.56 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $129.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $121.00. The company has a market capitalization of $20.60 billion, a PE ratio of 20.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $101.00 and a twelve month high of $138.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.09% and a return on equity of 8.94%. The company had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $924.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.94 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a dividend of $0.805 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.28%.

Atmos Energy Profile

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.