Keystone Financial Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Keystone Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 67.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 957 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 385 shares during the quarter. Keystone Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $150,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in ATO. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 191.2% in the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 141.2% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 379.7% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New Hampshire purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the first quarter worth about $58,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

ATO stock opened at $170.07 on Friday. Atmos Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $136.05 and a 1 year high of $171.20. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $158.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.37. The firm has a market cap of $27.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.74.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.05% and a return on equity of 9.00%. The business had revenue of $838.77 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $848.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 25th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on ATO shares. Barclays reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $156.00 to $153.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Mizuho increased their target price on Atmos Energy from $164.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 17th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $159.00 target price (up from $146.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, 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 note on Thursday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.50.

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.