Aventail Capital Group LP Sells 105,092 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Aventail Capital Group LP reduced its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 15.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 583,673 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 105,092 shares during the period. Southern accounts for approximately 2.9% of Aventail Capital Group LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Aventail Capital Group LP’s holdings in Southern were worth $50,896,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ankerstar Wealth LLC bought a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and issued a $87.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 price target on Southern and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $104.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price target on Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.38.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $92.63 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $93.72 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.57, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.34. Southern Company has a one year low of $83.80 and a one year high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.07 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.Southern’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.35%.

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.