Cetera Trust Company N.A Has $42,000 Stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Cetera Trust Company N.A lowered its position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 25.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Cetera Trust Company N.A’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $42,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ATO. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $349,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 3.7% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 3,049 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Mcdonald Partners LLC grew its holdings 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 period. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $810,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 467.0% during the first quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO stock traded down $0.17 on Tuesday, hitting $142.04. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 149,102 shares, compared to its average volume of 873,855. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.73. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $135.19 and its 200-day moving average is $124.47. Atmos Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $105.44 and a fifty-two week high of $144.32. The company has a market capitalization of $21.43 billion, a PE ratio of 21.32, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.08 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $701.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $924.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.94 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 9th. Investors of record on Monday, August 26th were paid a $0.805 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.27%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.94.

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.