ABN AMRO Bank N.V. Increases Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• ABN AMRO Bank N.V. increased its Southern Company stake by 53.7% in the fourth quarter, buying 11,250 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 32,215 shares valued at about $2.8 million.
• Southern reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.32 versus the $1.21 consensus and revenue of $8.40 billion, up 8% year over year.
• The utility also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.74, implying an annualized dividend of $3.04 and a yield of about 3.3%.

ABN AMRO Bank N.V. lifted its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 53.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,215 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,250 shares during the period. ABN AMRO Bank N.V.'s holdings in Southern were worth $2,806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Southern Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $93.10 on Tuesday. 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 has a market cap of $104.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.36. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.09 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $95.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.86.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.07 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The company's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is an increase from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SO has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore upgraded Southern from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $111.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $104.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Truist Financial initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. They set a "hold" rating and a $103.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Mizuho set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $99.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This trade represents a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the completion of 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 ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Southern

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.