Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Purchases 1,345 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 11,208.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,357 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,345 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $189,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 1,542.9% during the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 72.5% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the fourth quarter worth $79,000. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $148.72 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $146.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.63. Atmos Energy Co. has a one year low of $110.97 and a one year high of $154.55.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 EPS 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 analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.34%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 49.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on ATO shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 target price for the company. Argus upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $148.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $149.15.

About Atmos Energy

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.