Calamos Advisors LLC Has $17.15 Million Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Calamos Advisors LLC drastically trimmed its stake in Southern by 99.9% in Q4, selling about 148.19 million shares and finishing the period with 196,647 shares worth roughly $17.15 million.
• Southern raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 (annualized $3.04), implying a 3.3% yield with an ex-dividend date of May 18 and a payout ratio of 77.35%.
• In its latest quarter Southern reported EPS of $0.55 (missing estimates by $0.01) while revenue grew 10.1% to $6.98B; analysts’ consensus rating is a Hold with a $99.08 price target.

Calamos Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 99.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 196,647 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 148,189,648 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $17,148,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 transaction of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO stock opened at $93.52 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $105.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $92.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 12 month low of $83.09 and a 12 month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.41 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. Analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This is a positive change from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SO shares. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Evercore upgraded shares of Southern from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $111.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Mizuho set a $104.00 price target on shares of Southern and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Southern from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $99.08.

Southern 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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