Deutsche Bank AG Invests $431.68 Million in Atmos Energy Corporation $ATO

Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE:ATO) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 2,505,816 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $431,677,000. Deutsche Bank AG owned approximately 1.50% of Atmos Energy as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ATO. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Atmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $331,426,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Atmos Energy by 94.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,652,267 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $562,851,000 after buying an additional 1,778,653 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Atmos Energy by 26,269.9% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,033,701 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $173,279,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,781 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its position in Atmos Energy by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,893,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,993,968,000 after purchasing an additional 927,986 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in Atmos Energy in the second quarter worth $151,166,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.17% of the company’s stock.

Atmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of ATO stock opened at $170.12 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $173.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $178.25. 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 company has a market capitalization of $28.75 billion, a PE ratio of 20.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.60. Atmos Energy Corporation has a twelve month low of $160.10 and a twelve month high of $192.51.

Atmos Energy (NYSE:ATO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $900.82 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.16 earnings per share. Atmos Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.400-8.500 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Atmos Energy Corporation will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Atmos Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 24th will be given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 24th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Atmos Energy’s payout ratio is presently 47.56%.

Insider Transactions at Atmos Energy

In other news, Director William James Ware bought 300 shares of Atmos Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $167.59 per share, with a total value of $50,277.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,783.92. This represents a 159.57% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.43% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ATO. Argus dropped their target price on shares of Atmos Energy from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Atmos Energy in a research note on Monday, July 13th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Atmos Energy from $188.00 to $179.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley set a $196.00 price objective on shares of Atmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Atmos Energy from $182.00 to $191.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $188.27.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation (NYSE: ATO) is a U.S.-based natural-gas utility that primarily focuses on the regulated distribution of natural gas. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, the company operates through local distribution systems to deliver natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. Atmos’s core activities include pipeline operations, gas distribution, system maintenance and reliability programs designed to ensure safe and continuous service to its customers.

The company’s services encompass gas delivery, system integrity and maintenance, storage and transmission connections, and customer-facing programs such as billing, conservation initiatives and energy-efficiency offerings.