Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. Sells 115,837 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. reduced its holdings in Southern Company by 56.7% in Q2, selling 115,837 shares and bringing their total shares down to 88,418.
• Southern Company's earnings report indicated a missed estimate of $0.99 earnings per share, with actual earnings of $0.91, but revenue increased to $6.97 billion, exceeding expectations.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.1%, with a payout ratio of 76.09%.

Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. cut its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 56.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 88,418 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 115,837 shares during the quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V.'s holdings in Southern were worth $8,119,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new position in Southern in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank bought a new stake in Southern in the first quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Southern stock opened at $94.56 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $93.45 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.48. The company has a market capitalization of $104.02 billion, a PE ratio of 24.31, a P/E/G ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.43. Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $80.46 and a fifty-two week high of $96.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 15.10%.The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. Southern'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, equities analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SO has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Southern from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on Southern in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $95.08.

Insider Activity at Southern

In other news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $1,250,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 93,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Company 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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