Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO Shares Acquired by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) by 515.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 211,221 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 176,916 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.13% of Atmos Energy worth $36,066,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 141.2% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $46,000. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 11,200.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 24.0% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ATO shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $172.00 target price (down from $182.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Tuesday. Barclays set a $175.00 price target on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Argus set a $172.00 target price on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $170.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and eleven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $172.22.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Sean Donohue sold 450 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $171.15, for a total value of $77,017.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 877 shares in the company, valued at approximately $150,098.55. The trade was a 33.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

ATO stock opened at $169.34 on Friday. Atmos Energy Corporation has a one year low of $136.05 and a one year high of $180.65. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $173.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $165.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.38 billion, a PE ratio of 22.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 14th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $737.48 million for the quarter. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.07% and a net margin of 25.49%. On average, analysts forecast that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 7.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 24th were paid a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 24th. This is a positive change from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.40%.

Atmos Energy 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.