Inspire Investing LLC Increases Holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 5.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 17,851 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 846 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,751,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.2% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,086 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. SouthState Corp lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 4.9% during the first quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 1,447 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 3.8% during the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 26.0% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. Finally, Smith Shellnut Wilson LLC ADV lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 4.3% during the first quarter. Smith Shellnut Wilson LLC ADV now owns 1,968 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $304,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $176.45 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $166.31 and its 200-day simple moving average is $158.88. The company has a market cap of $28.32 billion, a PE ratio of 24.24, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $136.05 and a 12-month high of $177.83.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.17 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. The firm had revenue of $838.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.97 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 25th were given a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays set a $175.00 target price on Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a “neutral” rating and set a $163.00 target price (down previously from $171.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Atmos Energy from $162.00 to $167.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company 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.