Mackenzie Financial Corp Sells 847 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Mackenzie Financial Corp reduced its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,039 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 847 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $4,061,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vest Financial LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 247,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,633,000 after buying an additional 61,708 shares during the last quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 21,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,246,000 after buying an additional 693 shares during the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC raised its position in Atmos Energy by 29.6% in the 3rd quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 19,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,076,000 after buying an additional 4,479 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. raised its position in Atmos Energy by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 46,329 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,908,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ raised its position in Atmos Energy by 26.8% in the 3rd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 189,184 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $20,040,000 after buying an additional 39,970 shares during the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $1,746,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 186,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,701,039.94. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of Atmos Energy stock opened at $117.20 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $115.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.72. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $101.00 and a 1 year high of $125.28. The firm has a market cap of $17.68 billion, a PE ratio of 18.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

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

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Investors of record on Monday, February 26th were issued a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.11%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ATO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. StockNews.com raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, April 12th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 target price for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $124.33.

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.