Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Has $314,000 Holdings in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. boosted its position in Atmos Energy Co. (NYSE:ATO) by 8.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,713 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 216 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Atmos Energy were worth $314,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vest Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Atmos Energy by 33.3% in the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 247,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,633,000 after buying an additional 61,708 shares during the period. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 3.4% during the third quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 21,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,246,000 after acquiring an additional 693 shares in the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 29.6% during the third quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 19,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,076,000 after acquiring an additional 4,479 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 0.5% during the third quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 46,329 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,908,000 after acquiring an additional 253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its position in shares of Atmos Energy by 26.8% during the third quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 189,184 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $20,040,000 after acquiring an additional 39,970 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Stock Performance

Atmos Energy stock opened at $118.66 on Thursday. Atmos Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $101.00 and a 1-year high of $125.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.90 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $115.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $113.90.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 7th. The utilities provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.09 by ($0.01). Atmos Energy had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 23.43%. The firm had revenue of $1.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Atmos Energy Co. will post 6.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 26th were paid a $0.805 dividend. This represents a $3.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 23rd. Atmos Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.11%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on ATO. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Atmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $124.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Atmos Energy news, Director Kim R. Cocklin sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.46, for a total value of $1,746,900.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 186,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,701,039.94. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

About Atmos Energy

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.