Bank of America Corp DE Acquires 392,210 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Southern Company stake by 4.9% in the first quarter, purchasing 392,210 shares to reach 8.38 million shares valued at approximately $808.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 64.1% of Southern’s stock.
• Southern’s second-quarter adjusted EPS of $1.13 beat expectations, but revenue of $6.98 billion fell short of estimates and grew just 0.1% year over year. Near-term guidance was slightly cautious, with third-quarter EPS and the midpoint of full-year 2026 guidance below consensus.
• The company is investing in future demand through nearly 1,500 megawatts of new natural-gas generation and 500 megawatts of battery storage, while analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $100.26.

Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 4.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,380,592 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 392,210 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.74% of Southern worth $808,895,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SO. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 17.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,003 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,127,000 after buying an additional 5,067 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 59,217 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,438,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $655,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in Southern by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 449,960 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,320,000 after purchasing an additional 46,504 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its holdings in Southern by 2.7% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 514,736 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $47,268,000 after purchasing an additional 13,392 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

More Southern News

Here are the key news stories impacting Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter earnings beat expectations: Southern reported adjusted EPS of $1.13, above the $1.01 analyst consensus and up from $0.91 a year earlier. The company’s reported earnings were $1.2 billion, or $1.03 per share, compared with $0.9 billion, or $0.80 per share, in the prior-year quarter. Southern Co. Beats Q2 Earnings Estimates Southern Company Reports Second-Quarter 2026 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Capacity expansion is positioning the utility for load growth: Georgia Power is developing nearly 1,500 megawatts of new natural-gas generation and 500 megawatts of battery storage at Plant Bowen. The projects could support reliability and future demand from industrial customers and data centers, although they also require substantial capital investment. Georgia Power and Officials Celebrate Plant Bowen Investments
• Positive Sentiment: Energy-storage and AI demand provide longer-term catalysts: Georgia Power completed the Moody Battery Energy Storage System, expanding Southern’s regulated storage platform. Analysts also point to large-load contracts and a reported 25-year OpenAI power agreement as potential drivers of future utility demand. Southern Completes Moody Battery Project Southern Company AI Data Center Opportunity
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue growth remained weak: Quarterly revenue was $6.98 billion, below the $7.23 billion consensus and up only 0.1% year over year, tempering the significance of the EPS beat. Southern Q2 Key Metrics Versus Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term guidance was slightly cautious: Third-quarter EPS guidance of $1.65 was below the $1.67 consensus, while the $4.50–$4.60 full-year 2026 range brackets but centers below the $4.57 estimate. The 2028 range of $5.25–$5.45, however, is at least in line with current expectations.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SO. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Seaport Research Partners lowered shares of Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $104.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their target price on Southern from $103.00 to $100.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $100.26.

Southern Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of SO opened at $94.79 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.59 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.79. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.80 and a 52 week high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The firm had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Southern's payout ratio is currently 72.90%.

Southern Company 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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