Amalgamated Bank Boosts Stock Position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Amalgamated Bank grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 30,960 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $4,312,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Atria Investments Inc grew its position in Atmos Energy by 1.3% during the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 31,399 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,355,000 after buying an additional 402 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 33.3% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. now owns 8,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares during the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,897,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 348,988 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,604,000 after acquiring an additional 38,459 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

Atmos Energy Stock Up 1.8 %

ATO stock opened at $152.30 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $142.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $140.31. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.97 and a twelve month high of $152.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.17 billion, a PE ratio of 21.70, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, equities analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio 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.