Bollard Group LLC Reduces Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Bollard Group LLC cut its Southern Company stake by 28.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 128,581 shares and leaving it with 322,040 shares valued at about $28.1 million.
• Southern Company beat quarterly expectations, reporting $1.32 EPS versus the $1.21 consensus and revenue of $8.40 billion, while revenue rose 8% year over year.
• The company raised its dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.74, implying an annualized payout of $3.04 and a yield of 3.2%.

Bollard Group LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 28.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 322,040 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 128,581 shares during the period. Southern comprises approximately 0.7% of Bollard Group LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Bollard Group LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $28,082,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Aigen Investment Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,328,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 391,245 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $34,117,000 after buying an additional 9,895 shares during the period. Jacobi Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 28,880 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,518,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the period. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 24,620 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,147,000 after buying an additional 1,055 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 341,749 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,800,000 after buying an additional 5,169 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.7%

SO opened at $93.90 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $93.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.95. The company has a market capitalization of $105.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.89, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.34. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.80 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.07 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.Southern's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. Analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is an increase from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.35%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at $10,015,205.34. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on SO shares. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Southern from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Evercore upgraded Southern from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $111.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 price objective on Southern and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho set a $105.00 price objective on Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $99.38.

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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