Kanawha Capital Management LLC Increases Holdings in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Kanawha Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Southern Company by 2.7% during Q2, owning a total of 118,980 shares valued at about $10.93 million at the time of the disclosure.
• Southern Company reported earnings of $0.91 per share for the last quarter, missing expectations of $0.99, but achieved revenues of $6.97 billion, surpassing the forecast of $6.70 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, resulting in an annual yield of 3.0%, with a dividend payout ratio of 76.09%.

Kanawha Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 2.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 118,980 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 3,123 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $10,926,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 275.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the first quarter worth about $40,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $97.80 on Friday. 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 company has a market capitalization of $107.58 billion, a PE ratio of 25.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.43. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $80.46 and a 1 year high of $100.83. The company's fifty day moving average price is $94.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.99.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.70 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SO has been the subject of several recent research reports. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Southern from $78.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, October 6th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $103.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Southern from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $98.83.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,010.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,897,795. This trade represents a 12.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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