Sei Investments Co. Acquires 41,376 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 7.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 615,458 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,376 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co. owned 0.41% of Atmos Energy worth $71,793,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,472,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,314,641,000 after acquiring an additional 127,199 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,032,032 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,162,713,000 after purchasing an additional 1,041,608 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 5.6% in the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,575,191 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $187,243,000 after purchasing an additional 83,661 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.3% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,550,227 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $180,834,000 after purchasing an additional 19,981 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.6% during the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,521,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $177,506,000 after buying an additional 66,345 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.2 %

Atmos Energy 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. The company’s 50-day moving average is $129.61 and its 200-day moving average is $121.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.60 billion, a PE ratio of 20.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68. Atmos Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $101.00 and a fifty-two week high of $138.78.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $701.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $924.75 million. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.94% and a net margin of 25.09%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.36%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.