Sculptor Capital LP Decreases Stock Holdings in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Sculptor Capital LP nearly exited its Southern Company position in the fourth quarter, cutting holdings by 99.9% and selling 34.964 million shares, leaving just 36,000 shares valued at about $3.14 million.
• Southern reported solid quarterly results, with EPS of $1.32 and revenue of $8.40 billion, both ahead of analyst expectations; revenue also rose 8% year over year.
• The company raised its dividend to $0.76 per quarter from $0.74, implying an annualized payout of $3.04 and a yield of about 3.2%.

Sculptor Capital LP reduced its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 99.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 36,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 34,964,000 shares during the period. Sculptor Capital LP's holdings in Southern were worth $3,139,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SO. Ankerstar Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in Southern in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value of $2,416,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. The trade was a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction 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 represents a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE SO opened at $93.82 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $105.76 billion, a PE ratio of 23.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.34. Southern Company has a one year low of $83.80 and a one year high of $100.83. The firm's fifty day moving average is $93.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.00.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.07 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. Southern's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.76 dividend. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $104.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. BMO Capital Markets reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $103.00 to $100.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Mizuho set a $105.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $99.38.

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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