Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Hits New 1-Year High Following Dividend Announcement

Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $144.51 and last traded at $143.78, with a volume of 344060 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $138.88.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.41%. This is a positive change from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 46.87%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ATO shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lifted their price target on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.94.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 1.9 %

The stock has a market cap of $22.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $138.29 and a 200 day moving average of $126.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.09% and a return on equity of 8.94%. The company had revenue of $701.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $924.75 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.94 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atmos Energy

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter worth about $37,000. PFS Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 75.6% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 248.5% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 805 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 158.3% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.