Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Acquires 6,401 Shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 173,169 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,401 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC owned 0.11% of Atmos Energy worth $24,117,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in 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 last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.5% during the third 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 last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy by 2,212.0% in the third 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 in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC bought a new position in Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,221,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 45.7% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 444,267 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,544,000 after buying an additional 139,429 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Edward Geiser purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,602 shares in the company, valued at $377,003.78. This represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.0 %

ATO opened at $139.55 on Friday. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.46 and a twelve month high of $152.65. The firm has a market cap of $21.69 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.94. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $142.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $136.81.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th were paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 25th. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on ATO. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $156.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $156.00 price objective for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Atmos Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $148.75.

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.