Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO Has $3.26 Million Stock Position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 6.0% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 27,385 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,552 shares during the period. Atmos Energy makes up approximately 1.4% of Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $3,255,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $4,586,000. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 467.0% in the first quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares during the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Atmos Energy during the first quarter worth about $810,000. Mcdonald Partners LLC boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 4.5% during the first quarter. Mcdonald Partners LLC now owns 2,894 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $344,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,578,000. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Diana J. Walters sold 400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.00, for a total value of $47,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,551 shares in the company, valued at $419,018. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO stock traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $116.65. 1,452,574 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,002,539. Atmos Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $101.00 and a 52 week high of $125.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.49, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.67. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $116.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $115.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $2.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.62 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.01% and a net margin of 24.65%. The business’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th were issued a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 24th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 48.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ATO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Atmos Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $130.00 to $132.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Atmos Energy from $121.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $128.67.

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.