First National Bank of Omaha Takes $16.98 Million Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• First National Bank of Omaha acquired 176,421 Southern Company shares during the second quarter, valued at approximately $16.98 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 64.1% of SO.
• Southern reported quarterly EPS of $1.13, beating consensus estimates of $1.01, while revenue reached $6.98 billion. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.76, equivalent to a 3.3% annual yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and a $100.09 target price. SO opened at $92.12, below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages.

First National Bank of Omaha acquired a new position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 176,421 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $16,976,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SO. Evergreen Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in Southern during the first quarter worth $25,000. Ankerstar Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $92.12 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The business's fifty day moving average price is $94.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.40. Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $83.80 and a fifty-two week high of $100.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The company had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.23 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.79 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Southern's payout ratio is 72.90%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on SO. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. KeyCorp cut Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $79.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Mizuho set a $106.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southern currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $100.09.

About Southern

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source