ProShare Advisors LLC Has $180.19 Million Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

ProShare Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,544,690 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 30,501 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned approximately 1.02% of Atmos Energy worth $180,188,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 second quarter worth $37,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 467.0% during the first quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the period. Tompkins Financial Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the first quarter worth $89,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $136.56 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57. Atmos Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $101.00 and a fifty-two week high of $138.78. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $129.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $121.05. The firm has a market cap of $20.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.47, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $701.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.94 EPS. Analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a dividend of $0.805 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.