Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Earns Sell Rating from Analysts at StockNews.com

Investment analysts at StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO – Get Rating) in a report released on Thursday. The brokerage set a “sell” rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Mizuho upped their price target on Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $137.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 9th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Atmos Energy from $107.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Atmos Energy from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Atmos Energy from $123.00 to $132.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Atmos Energy from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $122.88.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

NYSE ATO opened at $113.78 on Thursday. Atmos Energy has a 52-week low of $97.71 and a 52-week high of $122.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $114.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.31. The stock has a market cap of $16.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.93, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.61.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.93 by ($0.02). Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.50% and a net margin of 17.06%. The firm had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.86 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 46.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 12,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.14, for a total transaction of $1,464,250.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 228,846 shares in the company, valued at $26,807,020.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Atmos Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 3,442 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $386,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 10,376 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,163,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Delta Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 1.2% in the third quarter. Delta Financial Advisors LLC now owns 7,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $807,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Lumature Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 3.8% in the third quarter. Lumature Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $269,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mcdonald Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Mcdonald Partners LLC now owns 2,535 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.03% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Company Profile

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Atmos Energy Corp. engages in the provision of natural gas services. It operates under the Distribution, and Pipeline and Storage business segments. The Distribution segment is involved in regulated natural gas distribution and related sales operations. The Pipeline and Storage segment includes pipeline and storage operations of Atmos Pipeline-Texas division and natural gas transmission operations.