Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Has $36.25 Million Position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lowered its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 394,178 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,446 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Southern were worth $36,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. MBE Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Southern by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. MBE Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,827 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $260,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. LVZ Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. LVZ Inc. now owns 18,744 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,723,000 after purchasing an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund increased its position in shares of Southern by 2.0% in the first quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 31,855 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,929,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the period. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV acquired a new position in Southern in the first quarter valued at about $206,000. Finally, Childress Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in Southern by 4.8% during the first quarter. Childress Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,429 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $499,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SO has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $78.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. UBS Group raised their target price on Southern from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Southern in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $102.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, June 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $92.93.

Southern Trading Up 0.6%

SO traded up $0.55 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $91.22. 2,071,334 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,585,071. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.38. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $89.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $87.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $76.96 and a 1-year high of $94.45.

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

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $0.74 dividend. This is a positive change from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. Southern's payout ratio is presently 70.64%.

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.