Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Bought by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 0.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,552,250 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,023 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 1.00% of Atmos Energy worth $215,313,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Cooke & Bieler LP increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.6% in the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,521,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $177,506,000 after buying an additional 66,345 shares in the last quarter. Sfmg LLC grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 1,059,221 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $123,558,000 after acquiring an additional 9,253 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 36.7% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 730,759 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $85,240,000 after purchasing an additional 196,163 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 18.9% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 710,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $82,918,000 after purchasing an additional 113,109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 636,660 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $88,311,000 after purchasing an additional 13,714 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on ATO shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price target for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lifted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $144.31.

Insider Activity at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Edward Geiser bought 2,500 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction 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 completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $377,003.78. The trade was a 2,450.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

ATO opened at $150.05 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $140.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $110.46 and a 1 year high of $151.24. The stock has a market cap of $23.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.97, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.68.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. This is a positive change from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is currently 46.87%.

About Atmos Energy

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.