Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. Makes New Investment in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Capital Group Private Client Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 162,032 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $22,566,000.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 560,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $77,788,000 after buying an additional 73,007 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $442,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in Atmos Energy by 6.6% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 13,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,887,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares during the period. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the third quarter valued at $2,299,000. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 33,932 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,707,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on ATO. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $142.00 to $147.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Atmos Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Monday, March 31st. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $154.39.

Atmos Energy Stock Up 0.7 %

ATO stock opened at $157.37 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $150.07 and its 200 day moving average is $144.81. The stock has a market cap of $24.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $110.97 and a 1-year high of $159.20.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.20 by $0.03. Atmos Energy had a net margin of 25.90% and a return on equity of 8.89%. Sell-side analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 7.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 25th were issued a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 25th. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is currently 49.57%.

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.