Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO – Get Rating) had its target price dropped by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $125.00 to $115.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 0.98% from the stock’s current price.
Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 8th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $132.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $123.00 to $132.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 14th. Seaport Res Ptn restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Monday, October 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $120.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $121.71.
Atmos Energy Stock Performance
ATO stock traded up $1.35 on Monday, hitting $113.88. The company had a trading volume of 8,853 shares, compared to its average volume of 845,900. Atmos Energy has a 12-month low of $97.71 and a 12-month high of $122.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $113.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $112.26. The stock has a market cap of $16.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.59.
Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $722.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $659.68 million. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 18.43% and a return on equity of 8.61%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 27.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Atmos Energy will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy
In related news, VP Richard M. Thomas sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.37, for a total value of $121,407.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $319,079.67. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Atmos Energy
A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Atmos Energy by 2.4% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 18,030,858 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,836,444,000 after purchasing an additional 422,653 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 5.1% during the first quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,772,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,287,188,000 after purchasing an additional 527,261 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 14.9% in the second quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 4,917,780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $551,284,000 after purchasing an additional 636,809 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 4,415,431 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $495,219,000 after buying an additional 105,241 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 24.0% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,756,708 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $329,399,000 after acquiring an additional 533,372 shares in the last quarter. 91.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
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.
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