Dearborn Partners LLC Sells 6,082 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Dearborn Partners LLC decreased its stake in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 274,285 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,082 shares during the period. Atmos Energy accounts for approximately 1.5% of Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest position. Dearborn Partners LLC’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $38,046,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,472,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,314,641,000 after purchasing an additional 127,199 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Atmos Energy by 1.3% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,550,227 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $180,834,000 after buying an additional 19,981 shares during the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 4.6% during the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 1,521,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $177,506,000 after buying an additional 66,345 shares in the last quarter. Sfmg LLC raised its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.9% in the second quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 1,059,221 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $123,558,000 after acquiring an additional 9,253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 36.7% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 730,759 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $85,240,000 after acquiring an additional 196,163 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Edward Geiser acquired 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $144.89 per share, for a total transaction of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,602 shares in the company, valued at $377,003.78. This represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on ATO. Barclays raised their price target on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Atmos Energy from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.94.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 1.5 %

ATO opened at $144.37 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $139.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $127.47. Atmos Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $110.46 and a fifty-two week high of $148.39. The company has a market cap of $22.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 25th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.41%. This is a boost from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is currently 46.87%.

Atmos Energy Company 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.