Bank of Montreal Can Has $38.31 Million Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Bank of Montreal Can trimmed its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 3.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 278,029 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,306 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can owned approximately 0.18% of Atmos Energy worth $38,307,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. PFS Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 158.3% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,000 after buying an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lummis Asset Management LP boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the second quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 1,128 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $132,000 after buying an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $147.69.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $151.43 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $142.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $129.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $110.46 and a 1 year high of $152.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.80.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This is a boost from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 50.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Edward Geiser acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $377,003.78. The trade was a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Atmos Energy 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.