Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Invests $3.01 Million in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 21,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,008,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,745,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,906,618,000 after acquiring an additional 1,341,640 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $112,002,000. Nilsine Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $76,360,000. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,800,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,498,153,000 after purchasing an additional 362,594 shares during the period. Finally, Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in Atmos Energy by 2,212.0% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 291,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,446,000 after purchasing an additional 278,961 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on ATO shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price objective on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $148.75.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.2 %

ATO stock opened at $150.81 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $145.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $142.37. Atmos Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $110.97 and a 12 month high of $154.55.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is presently 49.57%.

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.