Foundations Investment Advisors LLC Acquires 32,516 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southern Company by 14.5% in the fourth quarter, buying 32,516 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 257,096 shares valued at about $22.4 million.
• Southern reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.32 versus estimates of $1.21 and revenue of $8.40 billion versus expectations of $8.07 billion, with revenue up 8% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.74, implying an annualized payout of $3.04 and a yield of 3.2%.

Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 14.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 257,096 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 32,516 shares during the quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $22,419,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in Southern by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 266,943 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $23,277,000 after buying an additional 5,732 shares in the last quarter. Connecticut Capital Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $319,000. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 40,282 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,513,000 after buying an additional 890 shares in the last quarter. Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas grew its holdings in Southern by 104.1% in the 4th quarter. Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas now owns 24,885 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,170,000 after buying an additional 12,693 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc grew its holdings in Southern by 91.0% in the 4th quarter. Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services Inc now owns 5,355 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 2,552 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Performance

SO opened at $93.72 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $105.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.36. Southern Company has a 52-week low of $83.80 and a 52-week high of $100.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.65. The business's fifty day moving average is $94.82 and its 200-day moving average is $91.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.07 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.Southern's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 77.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at $10,015,205.34. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 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 value of $643,891.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This represents a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, April 10th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. KeyCorp raised Southern from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 price objective on Southern and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, TD Cowen increased their target price on Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $99.56.

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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