Atmos Energy’s (ATO) Neutral Rating Reiterated at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated their neutral rating on shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $180.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock, down from their previous target price of $198.00.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, July 13th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 price objective on the stock. Argus dropped their target price on Atmos Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $188.00 to $179.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Barclays decreased their price target on Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on Atmos Energy from $192.00 to $184.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $186.09.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Atmos Energy stock opened at $163.27 on Friday. Atmos Energy has a 12-month low of $160.10 and a 12-month high of $192.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.60. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $172.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $177.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.73.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by $0.08. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 28.50% and a return on equity of 9.67%. The business had revenue of $879.06 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $900.82 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Atmos Energy will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 24th were issued a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 24th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atmos Energy news, Director William Ware acquired 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 488 shares in the company, valued at $81,783.92. This represents a 159.57% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.43% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atmos Energy

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 6,920.2% in the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 33,258,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,729,462,000 after purchasing an additional 32,784,865 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $2,624,975,000. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,893,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,993,968,000 after purchasing an additional 927,986 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,786,358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,808,117,000 after purchasing an additional 155,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,214,985 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $703,824,000 after buying an additional 78,438 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Company Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) is a regulated natural gas distribution and pipeline company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Through its utility operations, the company delivers natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers, with services focused on safe and reliable energy delivery.

Atmos Energy serves customers across eight states: Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Its operations include local natural gas distribution as well as pipeline transportation and storage activities, primarily through its Atmos Pipeline-Texas business.

The company traces its roots to 1906 and has expanded over time through growth and acquisitions in the natural gas industry.