Whittier Trust Co. Has $2.16 Million Stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Whittier Trust Co. reduced its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,529 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 221 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $2,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ATO. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.7% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $320,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 11.9% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 2,605 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.8% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 22,689 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,147,000 after purchasing an additional 1,030 shares during the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the third quarter valued at $1,897,000. Finally, Commerce Bank increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 12.5% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 11,437 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,586,000 after purchasing an additional 1,268 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on ATO shares. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Argus raised 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 report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 target price for the company. 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 given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.15.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 1.4 %

ATO opened at $148.72 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.97 and a twelve month high of $154.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $146.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $142.55. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. Analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.57%.

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.