Jennison Associates LLC decreased its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO - Free Report) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 229,307 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,985 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned about 0.15% of Atmos Energy worth $31,936,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,745,352 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,906,618,000 after buying an additional 1,341,640 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,800,610 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,498,153,000 after buying an additional 362,594 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 885,950 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $122,890,000 after acquiring an additional 34,555 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.2% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 636,660 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $88,311,000 after acquiring an additional 13,714 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 15.0% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 560,790 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $77,788,000 after acquiring an additional 73,007 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
In related news, Director Edward Geiser bought 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $144.89 per share, for a total transaction of $362,225.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,602 shares in the company, valued at $377,003.78. This trade represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.48% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
NYSE ATO opened at $142.57 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $22.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.72. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $110.46 and a 1 year high of $152.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $141.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $138.11.
Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.04% and a return on equity of 8.83%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.
The firm 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 dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.44%. Atmos Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.66%.
Several research analysts have weighed in on ATO shares. StockNews.com raised Atmos Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a "buy" rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $148.75.
Read Our Latest Analysis on ATO
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.
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