Arizona State Retirement System Boosts Position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO)

Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 321,553 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,735 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System's holdings in Southern were worth $29,567,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Southern by 56.6% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,547 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $292,000 after buying an additional 1,282 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 20.3% in the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 65,182 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,366,000 after acquiring an additional 10,999 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southern by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 25,007 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,059,000 after purchasing an additional 2,879 shares in the last quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southern by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 42,094 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,465,000 after purchasing an additional 1,308 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Essential Planning LLC. acquired a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter worth $1,006,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Trading Down 0.7%

Southern stock traded down $0.66 during trading on Friday, hitting $92.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,014,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,708,344. The stock's fifty day moving average is $89.82 and its 200 day moving average is $88.15. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $79.30 and a 1-year high of $94.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.03. Southern had a return on equity of 12.70% and a net margin of 16.54%. The company had revenue of $7.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.20%. Southern's payout ratio is currently 70.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Southern from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $102.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $93.00 price target on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $92.93.

About Southern

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.