Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) Shares Purchased by Citigroup Inc.

Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 10.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 354,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 32,235 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned approximately 0.23% of Atmos Energy worth $49,121,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Atmos Energy during the second quarter worth $37,000. PFS Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy during the third quarter worth $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 75.6% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 158.3% during the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lummis Asset Management LP boosted its position in Atmos Energy by 50.0% during the second quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 1,128 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $132,000 after purchasing an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on ATO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH boosted their target price on Atmos Energy from $144.00 to $150.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $129.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Atmos Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $155.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Atmos Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.31.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE ATO opened at $150.05 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $141.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $128.85. Atmos Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $110.46 and a twelve month high of $151.24. The company has a market capitalization of $23.32 billion, a PE ratio of 21.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, November 25th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 25th. This is an increase from Atmos Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.81. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 50.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Edward Geiser bought 2,500 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $144.89 per share, for a total transaction of $362,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $377,003.78. This represents a 2,450.98 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Atmos Energy 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.