Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. Sells 641 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 20.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,529 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 641 shares during the quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $293,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 984.6% during the third quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 256 shares during the period. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 107.0% in the third quarter. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC now owns 294 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 57.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Finally, Ronald Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 80.5% in the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 296 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Atmos Energy Trading Up 0.0 %

ATO opened at $114.57 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $101.00 and a twelve month high of $125.28. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.66.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.09 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 23.43%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.91 EPS. Analysts predict that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a dividend of $0.805 per share. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 23rd. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is 51.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ATO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research report on Friday, April 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Atmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Atmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $124.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total transaction of $1,746,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 186,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,701,039.94. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

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.