Southern Company (The) $SO Position Lifted by World Investment Advisors

World Investment Advisors raised its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 53.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 30,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,519 shares during the quarter. World Investment Advisors’ holdings in Southern were worth $2,625,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $37,000. Donaldson Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 2,785.8% during the 3rd quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 563,027 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,358,000 after purchasing an additional 543,517 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,852,000. Spirepoint Private Client LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Spirepoint Private Client LLC now owns 97,631 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,513,000 after buying an additional 11,460 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of Southern by 1.8% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,753,676 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $260,966,000 after purchasing an additional 47,451 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Evercore upgraded shares of Southern from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $111.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction of $643,891.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at $2,973,740. This represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This trade represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Southern Trading Down 1.2%

NYSE:SO opened at $92.56 on Friday. Southern Company has a 12 month low of $83.80 and a 12 month high of $100.83. The firm has a market cap of $104.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The company’s 50 day moving average is $95.34 and its 200-day moving average is $91.80.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. Southern’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.32%.

Southern Company Profile

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an Atlanta-based energy holding company that provides electric and gas utility services and owns power generation assets across the United States. Founded in 1945, the company operates a portfolio of regulated electric utilities and affiliated businesses that generate, transmit and distribute electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Southern’s principal regulated electric subsidiaries include Georgia Power, Alabama Power and Mississippi Power, which serve large portions of the southeastern United States.