Cullinan Associates Inc. Sells 26,493 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Cullinan Associates Inc. reduced its Southern Company stake by 20.4% in the first quarter, selling 26,493 shares and leaving it with 103,284 shares valued at about $9.97 million.
• Southern’s stock traded up 0.5% to $95.62, with the company carrying a market cap of $107.79 billion and a dividend yield of about 3.2% after raising its quarterly payout to $0.76 per share.
• The company beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.32 EPS versus the $1.21 consensus, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average price target of $99.26.

Cullinan Associates Inc. cut its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 20.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 103,284 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 26,493 shares during the period. Cullinan Associates Inc.'s holdings in Southern were worth $9,969,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ankerstar Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Southern from $103.00 to $100.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners downgraded shares of Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $99.26.

Southern Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:SO traded up $0.45 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $95.62. 3,096,682 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,509,696. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.65. Southern Company has a 12 month low of $83.80 and a 12 month high of $100.83. The business's 50-day moving average price is $94.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. Southern's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.57 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 represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.35%.

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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