DALLAS (AP) — DALLAS (AP) — Atmos Energy Corp. (ATO) on Wednesday reported fiscal fourth-quarter profit of $175 million.

On a per-share basis, the Dallas-based company said it had net income of $1.07.

The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of three analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.01 per share.

For the year, the company reported profit of $1.2 billion, or $7.46 per share.

Atmos expects full-year earnings to be $8.15 to $8.35 per share.

Atmos shares have risen 24% since the beginning of the year. In the final minutes of trading on Wednesday, shares hit $172.59, a rise of 25% in the last 12 months.

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