Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) Stock Has Average Price Target of $185.09

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $185.09.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ATO. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $188.00 to $179.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $180.00 price target (down from $198.00) on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Atmos Energy from $184.00 to $183.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Argus cut their price objective on shares of Atmos Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Friday, August 28th.

Atmos Energy Stock Down 0.0%

ATO stock opened at $157.17 on Friday. Atmos Energy has a 1-year low of $155.00 and a 1-year high of $192.51. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $168.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $175.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.56 billion, a PE ratio of 18.69, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.60.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.35 by $0.08. Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 28.50%.The business had revenue of $879.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $900.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.16 EPS. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy will post 8.46 EPS for the current year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 24th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 24th. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.56%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director William Ware purchased 300 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $167.59 per share, for a total transaction of $50,277.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,783.92. This trade represents a 159.57% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. QRG Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Atmos Energy in the second quarter valued at about $10,387,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 504.9% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 7,815 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,346,000 after acquiring an additional 6,523 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in Atmos Energy by 176.7% during the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 22,612 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,895,000 after acquiring an additional 14,440 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in Atmos Energy by 163.5% during the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 42,632 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,344,000 after acquiring an additional 26,454 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service increased its position in Atmos Energy by 2.4% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 250,465 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,148,000 after acquiring an additional 5,778 shares during the period. 90.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Atmos Energy Company Profile

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) is a regulated natural gas distribution and pipeline company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Through its utility operations, the company delivers natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers, with services focused on safe and reliable energy delivery.

Atmos Energy serves customers across eight states: Colorado, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. Its operations include local natural gas distribution as well as pipeline transportation and storage activities, primarily through its Atmos Pipeline-Texas business.

The company traces its roots to 1906 and has expanded over time through growth and acquisitions in the natural gas industry.