Nicolet Advisory Services LLC Invests $205,000 in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Nicolet Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 1,472 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. PFS Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $69,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 75.6% in the 2nd 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 shares of Atmos Energy by 158.3% in the 2nd 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 lifted its position in Atmos Energy by 50.0% in the 2nd quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 1,128 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $132,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares in the last quarter. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ATO shares. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Atmos Energy from $134.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com raised Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Atmos Energy from $145.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “hold” rating and a $155.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $144.31.

Atmos Energy Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:ATO opened at $150.05 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.68. Atmos Energy Co. has a one year low of $110.46 and a one year high of $151.24. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $141.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $128.85.

Atmos Energy Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Edward Geiser bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $144.89 per share, with a total value of $362,225.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.