Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Shares Purchased by LRI Investments LLC

LRI Investments LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,181 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $182,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ATO. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth $233,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Atmos Energy by 41.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $282,000 after buying an additional 537 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Atmos Energy by 248.7% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 8,150 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,260,000 after buying an additional 5,813 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in Atmos Energy by 25.9% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,874 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $908,000 after buying an additional 1,209 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Atmos Energy by 30.9% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,776 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,975,000 after buying an additional 3,015 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

NYSE:ATO opened at $176.45 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $166.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $159.00. The firm has a market cap of $28.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.24, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.74. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $136.05 and a 52-week high of $177.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. The company had revenue of $838.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 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 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th were given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ATO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Argus set a $172.00 price target on Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Atmos Energy from $162.00 to $167.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Barclays set a $175.00 price target on Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $164.70.

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.