Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Now Covered by UBS Group

Investment analysts at UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) in a research report issued on Friday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock. UBS Group’s price target points to a potential upside of 8.78% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $131.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $124.33.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:ATO opened at $113.99 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.66. Atmos Energy has a 1-year low of $101.00 and a 1-year high of $125.28. The company’s fifty day moving average is $114.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.44.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 23.43%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.91 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 6.59 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Atmos Energy

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $1,746,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 186,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,701,039.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Atmos Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Cibc World Market Inc. acquired a new position in Atmos Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $4,131,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 7.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 556,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $66,443,000 after buying an additional 36,977 shares during the last quarter. Aviva PLC increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 77.8% in the first quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 91,071 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,882,000 after buying an additional 39,843 shares during the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in Atmos Energy by 51.0% in the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 13,029 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,557,000 after buying an additional 4,401 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential PLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $494,000. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.