Bank OZK Has $3.32 Million Stake in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

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Bank OZK lifted its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 10.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 36,150 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 3,394 shares during the quarter. Southern comprises 1.4% of Bank OZK's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Bank OZK's holdings in Southern were worth $3,324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Investors Research Corp boosted its position in Southern by 400.0% during the first quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new stake in Southern during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Southern during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Rossby Financial LCC bought a new stake in Southern during the first quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Elequin Capital LP boosted its position in Southern by 60.6% during the fourth quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 498 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $92.87 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $90.31. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $102.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.87, a PEG ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.38. Southern Company has a one year low of $80.46 and a one year high of $96.44.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.70 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio is presently 76.09%.

Insider Activity at Southern

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at $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 can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised Southern from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $102.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. Wall Street Zen cut Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Southern in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Southern from $98.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Southern from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $94.29.

Southern Company Profile

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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