Redmond Asset Management LLC Takes Position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Redmond Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,975 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $275,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ATO. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,745,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,906,618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,341,640 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,800,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,498,153,000 after buying an additional 362,594 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.1% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 885,950 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $122,890,000 after buying an additional 34,555 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.2% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 636,660 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $88,311,000 after acquiring an additional 13,714 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 15.0% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 560,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $77,788,000 after acquiring an additional 73,007 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Argus upgraded Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Bank of America started coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $148.75.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

ATO opened at $149.87 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $110.97 and a 12-month high of $152.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.72. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $141.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $139.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is presently 49.57%.

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.