ABN Amro Investment Solutions Takes $3.81 Million Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• ABN Amro Investment Solutions opened a new position in Southern Company during the fourth quarter, buying 43,700 shares worth about $3.81 million.
• Southern reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.32 versus the $1.21 estimate and revenue of $8.40 billion, up 8% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Hold” with an average target price of $99.56.

ABN Amro Investment Solutions purchased a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 43,700 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,811,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Little House Capital LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Little House Capital LLC now owns 32,340 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,820,000 after acquiring an additional 2,091 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 201.2% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 37,114 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,236,000 after acquiring an additional 24,790 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 7,870 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $686,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 76.0% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 13,101 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,142,000 after acquiring an additional 5,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 1,735 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $151,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and set a $87.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Thursday. Truist Financial assumed coverage on Southern in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. They set a "hold" rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $99.56.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 30th. The shares were 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 directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This trade represents a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction of $643,891.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.5%

Southern stock opened at $94.67 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $95.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $91.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.72 billion, a PE ratio of 24.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.36. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $83.80 and a 12-month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.07 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. The business's revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Southern's payout ratio is 77.35%.

Southern 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.

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