Yousif Capital Management LLC Sells 7,581 Shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Yousif Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 4.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 171,714 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,581 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $12,041,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SO. Rockline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth $1,945,000. Zullo Investment Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Southern by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,437 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $241,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its stake in Southern by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 14,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,045,000 after buying an additional 819 shares during the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC bought a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter worth $301,000. Finally, Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern in the fourth quarter worth $3,795,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.92, for a total value of $344,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,720,309.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $60,286.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,502 shares in the company, valued at $1,508,984.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.92, for a total value of $344,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 126,528 shares in the company, valued at $8,720,309.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,899 shares of company stock valued at $739,587. Company insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Bank of America raised their target price on Southern from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Barclays increased their price objective on Southern from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. UBS Group lowered Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $78.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.36.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO stock traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $73.91. The stock had a trading volume of 5,579,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,671,435. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The firm has a market cap of $80.90 billion, a PE ratio of 20.29, a P/E/G ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 0.49. The Southern Company has a one year low of $61.56 and a one year high of $75.80. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $69.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.24.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. Southern had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 15.79%. The business had revenue of $6.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. Southern’s revenue was down 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that The Southern Company will post 4 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a $0.72 dividend. This is an increase from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.90%. Southern’s payout ratio is presently 77.13%.

Southern Profile

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.