Analysts Set Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Target Price at $149.15

Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $149.15.

ATO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America began coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. Argus raised Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. StockNews.com lowered Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE ATO opened at $152.40 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The business has a 50-day moving average of $147.10 and a 200-day moving average of $143.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.71, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67. Atmos Energy has a 12 month low of $110.97 and a 12 month high of $154.55.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that Atmos Energy will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atmos Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Atmos Energy by 72.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth $37,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

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.