Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Makes New $26.15 Million Investment in Southern Company (The) $SO

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 315,503 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $26,152,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SO. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 1.4% in the third quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 181,376 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,034,000 after buying an additional 2,474 shares during the period. Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Southern by 7.2% in the third quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $769,000 after acquiring an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 65.6% during the third quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 6,863 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $569,000 after acquiring an additional 2,719 shares during the period. MGO One Seven LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 3.9% during the third quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 61,478 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,096,000 after acquiring an additional 2,283 shares during the period. Finally, Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.3% during the third quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 52,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,312,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on SO. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $79.00 to $74.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Southern from $114.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 25th. HSBC started coverage on shares of Southern in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $99.50 target price on the stock. Mizuho set a $106.00 target price on Southern in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on Southern from $101.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.24.

Southern Stock Up 1.0%

Southern stock opened at $94.64 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $108.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.31. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $87.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $92.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $81.69 and a 1-year high of $99.58.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 7th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.90%.

Southern Company Profile

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an energy holding company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Through its subsidiaries, the company generates, transmits, distributes and sells electricity, while also providing natural gas distribution and related energy services.

Southern’s electric utility operations include Alabama Power, Georgia Power and Mississippi Power, which serve customers across Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. The company’s generation portfolio includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and renewable energy resources.