Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Downgraded to Sell at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday morning.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Atmos Energy from $122.00 to $119.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Atmos Energy from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and increased their price target for the company from $130.00 to $132.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, April 12th. They set a neutral rating and a $124.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price 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. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on Atmos Energy from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Monday, May 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $128.67.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE ATO opened at $126.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Atmos Energy has a 1-year low of $101.00 and a 1-year high of $127.90. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $117.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $116.16. The company has a market capitalization of $19.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.67.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $2.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.62 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.54 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.01% and a net margin of 24.65%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.48 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 6.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a dividend of $0.805 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 24th. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.55%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 48.28%.

Insider Activity

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Diana J. Walters sold 400 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.00, for a total value of $47,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $419,018. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ATO. HB Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $201,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 275.0% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $117,000 after buying an additional 814 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 57.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $307,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 3,447 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares during the period. 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.