Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV Cuts Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV cut its stake in Southern Company by 49.7% in the third quarter, selling 42,621 shares and leaving 43,123 shares worth about $4.09 million (0.4% of the fund's holdings and its 19th-largest position).
• Southern's most recent quarter showed an EPS miss ($0.55 vs. $0.56 expected) while revenue rose 10.1% to $6.98 billion, and the company pays a $0.74 quarterly dividend (3.1% yield) with a 75.3% payout ratio.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the consensus rating is a "Hold" with an average target of $98.08 (six Buys, twelve Holds, one Sell), and several firms recently adjusted price targets both up and down.

Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV decreased its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 49.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,123 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 42,621 shares during the period. Southern accounts for 0.4% of Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Mainstay Capital Management LLC ADV's holdings in Southern were worth $4,087,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 17.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,003 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,127,000 after purchasing an additional 5,067 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its position in shares of Southern by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 59,217 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,438,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Southern by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 389,010 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,723,000 after buying an additional 18,619 shares during the last quarter. Nordwand Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $262,000. Finally, Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. increased its position in Southern by 26.5% during the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 7,468 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $686,000 after buying an additional 1,566 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of SO stock opened at $96.55 on Thursday. Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $83.09 and a fifty-two week high of $100.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.31 billion, a PE ratio of 24.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $92.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.41 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 14.69%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. Southern's payout ratio is presently 75.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho set a $104.00 price target on Southern and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Truist Financial set a $103.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, February 20th. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Southern from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. KeyCorp raised shares of Southern from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $98.08.

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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