Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. Purchases New Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. has acquired a new position in Southern Company, purchasing 25,611 shares valued at approximately $2,352,000, making it the firm’s 23rd largest holding.
• Southern Company's CEO recently sold 13,158 shares for $1,250,010, resulting in a 12.32% decrease in their ownership, which now stands at approximately $8.9 million.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed views on Southern Company, with four analysts rating it a "Buy" and one a "Sell," while the consensus rating remains a "Hold" with an average price target of $95.08.

Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 25,611 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,352,000. Southern comprises about 1.6% of Klein Pavlis & Peasley Financial Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Two Sigma Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $1,284,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Southern by 99.8% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,522 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260 shares during the last quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 7.5% during the first quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 5,676 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $522,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 19.8% during the first quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 9,522 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $876,000 after purchasing an additional 1,573 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern by 11,230.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,954,213 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $179,690,000 after buying an additional 1,936,965 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on SO shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted 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. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $102.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Southern in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $95.08.

Insider Activity

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Price Performance

SO stock opened at $94.54 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $104.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.30, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $80.46 and a 12-month high of $96.44. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $93.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.33.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 15.10%.The business had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.70 billion. The business's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $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, analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. Southern's payout ratio is presently 76.09%.

Southern Profile

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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