Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Boosts Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 31.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,361 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 802 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $466,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the second quarter worth approximately $37,000. PFS Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $69,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 158.3% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,000 after acquiring an additional 611 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Atmos Energy by 17.9% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 917 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the period. Finally, Lummis Asset Management LP increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the second quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 1,128 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $132,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on ATO shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH boosted their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $147.69.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In related news, Director Edward Geiser purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $377,003.78. The trade was a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $140.21 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $143.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.52. The company has a market capitalization of $21.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.70. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.46 and a twelve month high of $152.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 25th were given a $0.87 dividend. This is a boost from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.66%.

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.