AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Has $8.51 Million Position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd cut its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 15.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 92,552 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 16,578 shares during the quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd's holdings in Southern were worth $8,510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investors Research Corp lifted its holdings in Southern by 400.0% in the 1st quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. Elequin Capital LP grew its stake in shares of Southern by 60.6% in the 4th quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 498 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of SO stock traded down $0.85 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $95.00. The company had a trading volume of 1,266,328 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,733,273. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $90.04 and a 200-day moving average of $88.60. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $80.46 and a 12-month high of $96.44. The company has a market capitalization of $104.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.68, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.38.

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

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.64%.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,010.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This represents a 12.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp lowered Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $78.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Southern from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $102.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Barclays upped their target price on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $93.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Southern from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. One equities research 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.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $93.53.

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.