Kestra Advisory Services LLC Purchases 21,977 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Southern Company by 6.4% in the first quarter, buying 21,977 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 363,726 shares valued at about $35.1 million.
• Southern reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.32 versus estimates of $1.21 and revenue of $8.40 billion versus expectations of $8.07 billion. Revenue also rose 8% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.74, implying an annualized dividend of $3.04 and a yield of 3.2%. Analysts currently rate the stock a hold on average, with a consensus price target of $99.26.

Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 6.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 363,726 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 21,977 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $35,107,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Money Concepts Capital Corp grew its holdings in Southern by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Money Concepts Capital Corp now owns 63,141 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,094,000 after acquiring an additional 3,215 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Southern by 1.7% during the first quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 444,115 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,892,000 after acquiring an additional 7,476 shares during the last quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC raised its stake in shares of Southern by 1.6% during the first quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 13,834 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,335,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Atlas Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 5.7% during the first quarter. Atlas Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,952 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $768,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the period. Finally, CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Southern by 2.2% in the first quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,049 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,233,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE SO traded up $0.45 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $95.62. 3,096,682 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,509,696. The stock has a market cap of $107.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Southern Company has a one year low of $83.80 and a one year high of $100.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.09.

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

Southern Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $89.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Weiss Ratings raised Southern from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho set a $105.00 price target on Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Seaport Research Partners cut Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $99.26.

Southern Company 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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