Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Has $13.59 Million Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 43.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 97,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 29,373 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $13,589,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ethic Inc. grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 37.7% in the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 45,166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,290,000 after acquiring an additional 12,367 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 10,869 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,514,000 after purchasing an additional 803 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. grew its position in Atmos Energy by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 168,193 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $23,424,000 after purchasing an additional 1,499 shares during the period. DC Investments Management LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 63.3% during the 4th quarter. DC Investments Management LLC now owns 13,832 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,926,000 after purchasing an additional 5,363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 3,078,424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $428,732,000 after purchasing an additional 58,391 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Mizuho lowered Atmos Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $165.00 to $164.00 in a report on Monday, April 28th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, March 31st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $154.28.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Atmos Energy stock opened at $159.87 on Monday. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $110.97 and a 52 week high of $167.45. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $153.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $147.03. The stock has a market cap of $25.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.11. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 25.90%. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.85 earnings per share. Atmos Energy’s revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 48.33%.

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.