Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Sold by Checchi Capital Advisers LLC

Checchi Capital Advisers LLC trimmed its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 5.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 89 shares during the quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its stake in Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. PFS Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy in the third quarter valued at $69,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $79,000. Finally, Slocum Gordon & Co LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $125,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho upped their target price on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com downgraded Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.75.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO opened at $149.98 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $110.97 and a 1 year high of $152.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a current ratio of 1.56. The company’s fifty day moving average is $142.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $140.25.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be paid a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.32%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.