Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Rating Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH boosted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a hold rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $140.69.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:ATO opened at $139.84 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.97, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.68. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $132.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $122.62. Atmos Energy has a 12 month low of $105.27 and a 12 month high of $140.04.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $701.55 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $924.75 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.94 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Atmos Energy will post 6.78 EPS for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $0.805 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.28%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 1,489,174 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $172,595,000 after acquiring an additional 50,209 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 176,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $20,957,000 after purchasing an additional 6,641 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,876,000. Swedbank AB increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 565.3% during the 2nd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 40,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,738,000 after purchasing an additional 34,515 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $32,941,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.