Corebridge Financial Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Corebridge Financial Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,753 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,754 shares during the period. Corebridge Financial Inc.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $5,119,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $209,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 12.0% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 114,776 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $15,921,000 after buying an additional 12,269 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 58,229 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,077,000 after buying an additional 5,884 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 99,355 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,782,000 after buying an additional 7,059 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in Atmos Energy by 5.9% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 27,068 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,755,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $152.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.97 and a 12-month high of $154.55. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $147.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $143.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 25.90%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.57%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ATO. Bank of America initiated coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $149.15.

Atmos Energy Company 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.