DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale Buys 5,067 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale increased its stake in Southern Company by 2.8%, acquiring an additional 5,067 shares during the second quarter, bringing its total holdings to 184,531 shares valued at approximately $16.74 million.
• A range of analysts have revised their target prices for Southern Company's stock, with UBS raising it from $100 to $104 while maintaining a "neutral" rating, reflecting varied market views on the stock's performance.
• Southern Company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, with an annualized dividend yield of 3.0%, highlighting its commitment to returning value to shareholders amidst a 76.09% payout ratio.

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 2.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 184,531 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 5,067 shares during the quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale's holdings in Southern were worth $16,740,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Southern by 1.4% during the first quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 8,565 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $788,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Southern by 1.0% during the second quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,392 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,046,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Southern by 0.4% during the first quarter. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC now owns 32,627 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,000,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 5.3% during the first quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 2,399 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, S.A. Mason LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 7.6% during the second quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,708 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $157,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on SO shares. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Southern from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $99.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday. Barclays set a $70.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Southern from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $99.30.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO opened at $97.47 on Thursday. Southern Company has a one year low of $80.46 and a one year high of $100.83. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $92.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $107.22 billion, a PE ratio of 25.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. Southern's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.09%.

About Southern

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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