Mather Group LLC. Decreases Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Mather Group LLC cut its position in Southern Company by 43.2% in Q4, selling 11,571 shares and leaving the firm with 15,221 shares valued at about $1.33 million.
• EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares on March 19 at an average of $96.55 (≈$643,892), a 17.8% reduction in his holding; corporate insiders now own about 0.16% of the stock.
• Analysts hold a "Hold" consensus with a $98.08 price target; Southern narrowly missed Q4 EPS by $0.01 while revenue rose 10.1% to $6.98B, and the stock carries a 3.1% dividend yield (DPR ~75%).

Mather Group LLC. reduced its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 43.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,221 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 11,571 shares during the quarter. Mather Group LLC.'s holdings in Southern were worth $1,327,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its position in Southern by 0.5% in the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 21,461 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,034,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,230 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the third quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,485,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Sara Bay Financial boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 2.7% in the third quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 4,133 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $392,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 2.1% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,155 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $489,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This trade represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on SO. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, December 6th. KeyCorp raised shares of Southern from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Southern from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $98.08.

Southern Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $95.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $105.17 billion, a PE ratio of 24.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $93.42 and a 200 day simple moving average of $91.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $83.09 and a 12-month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.41 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The company's revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.50 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.32%.

About Southern

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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