GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. Acquires 8,622 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. increased its stake in Southern Company by 2.6%, now holding 345,731 shares valued at about $31.79 million, making it the fund's 15th largest investment.
• Southern Company reported a Q2 earnings per share (EPS) of $0.91, missing estimates by $0.08, while revenue rose 7.9% year-over-year to $6.97 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, representing an annual yield of 3.2%, with a payout ratio of 76.09%.

GW Henssler & Associates Ltd. lifted its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 2.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 345,731 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,622 shares during the period. Southern comprises approximately 1.8% of GW Henssler & Associates Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. GW Henssler & Associates Ltd.'s holdings in Southern were worth $31,790,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the first quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 15,928 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,465,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management raised its holdings in Southern by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 10,032 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $922,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 23.0% in the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 616 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. PFW Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. PFW Advisors LLC now owns 6,114 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $562,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Southern by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 8,565 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $788,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $1,250,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This trade represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Southern from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Mizuho raised their price objective on Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp lowered 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. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.92.

Southern Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of SO traded up $0.21 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $91.87. The company had a trading volume of 3,468,700 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,087,785. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $93.49 and a 200-day moving average price of $90.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $101.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.62, a P/E/G ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.41. Southern Company has a 52-week low of $80.46 and a 52-week high of $96.44.

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

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.