Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp Sells 3,125 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp has reduced its stake in Southern Company by 3.9%, selling 3,125 shares and maintaining a total of 77,238 shares, which is valued at approximately $7.09 million.
• Several hedge funds have increased their holdings in Southern Company, with notable increases including 46.1% from Novare Capital Management and 10.2% from Signature Estate & Investment Advisors.
• Southern Company's quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $0.91, falling short of the consensus estimate of $0.99, despite revenue exceeding expectations at $6.97 billion.

Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp reduced its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 77,238 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 3,125 shares during the period. Southern accounts for about 3.8% of Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp's investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Aull & Monroe Investment Management Corp's holdings in Southern were worth $7,093,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 10.2% during the 2nd quarter. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,853 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $354,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 46.1% during the 2nd quarter. Novare Capital Management LLC now owns 9,803 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $900,000 after purchasing an additional 3,094 shares during the last quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,960 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $364,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 13.6% during the 2nd quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 6,700 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $615,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 18.3% during the 2nd quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,698 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,993,000 after purchasing an additional 3,357 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday. They set a "buy" rating and a $112.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Southern from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $102.50 price objective (up from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $98.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $1,250,010.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This trade represents a 12.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE SO opened at $97.80 on Friday. Southern Company has a one year low of $80.46 and a one year high of $100.83. The company's 50 day moving average price is $94.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.14, a PEG ratio of 3.46 and a beta of 0.43.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.09%.

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.

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