Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) had its target price upped by equities researchers at Citigroup from $148.00 to $163.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Citigroup’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 3.42% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Mizuho lowered Atmos Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $165.00 to $164.00 in a research note on Monday, April 28th. StockNews.com raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, March 31st. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $155.15.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of ATO stock opened at $157.61 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $154.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $147.48. Atmos Energy has a 12-month low of $110.97 and a 12-month high of $167.45. The firm has a market cap of $25.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.74.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.92 by $0.11. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.89% and a net margin of 25.90%. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.85 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 18.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $150.98, for a total value of $2,264,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 172,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,063,979.36. This represents a 7.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. raised its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 33.3% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management UK Ltd. now owns 8,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 348,988 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $48,604,000 after buying an additional 38,459 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 12.7% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 6,029 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $840,000 after buying an additional 681 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,319,000. Finally, Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 42.9% in the 4th quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC now owns 11,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,532,000 after buying an additional 3,300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

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.