Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Has $9.39 Million Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its stake in Southern Company by 6.6%, purchasing an additional 6,318 shares, bringing its total holdings to 102,115 shares worth approximately $9.39 million.
• Southern Company reported a miss on earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter at $0.91, below the expected $0.99, although it achieved revenues of $6.97 billion, surpassing analysts’ expectations.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, representing a 3.1% yield, with a dividend payout ratio of around 76.09%.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 6.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 102,115 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,318 shares during the quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $9,389,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SO. OneAscent Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter worth $510,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 49,879 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,586,000 after purchasing an additional 626 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service boosted its position in shares of Southern by 6.9% in the first quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,780,525 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $255,669,000 after acquiring an additional 180,451 shares during the last quarter. MSH Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Southern by 3.9% during the first quarter. MSH Capital Advisors LLC now owns 21,036 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,934,000 after buying an additional 785 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dagco Inc. purchased a new position in Southern in the 1st quarter worth approximately $92,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $93.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 2nd. KeyCorp downgraded Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $78.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Mizuho upped their price target on Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the business's 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 owned 93,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,897,795. The trade was a 12.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Southern Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:SO traded up $1.3210 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $94.1710. 4,690,464 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,202,545. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $92.68 and a 200-day moving average price of $90.34. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $80.46 and a 52 week high of $96.44. The company has a market cap of $103.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.25 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

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

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Southern's payout ratio is 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.