Sei Investments Co. Has $51.54 Million Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Sei Investments Co. boosted its Southern Company stake by 28.1% in the first quarter, buying 117,227 additional shares. The fund now holds 533,959 shares valued at about $51.5 million.
• Southern posted stronger-than-expected quarterly results, reporting $1.32 EPS versus the $1.21 consensus and revenue of $8.40 billion, up 8% year over year. Analysts now expect the company to earn 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.
• The company reaffirmed its dividend appeal with a quarterly payout of $0.76 per share, or $3.04 annually, for a yield of about 3.1%. Its stock also traded near the top of its 52-week range at $97.29, while analysts’ average rating remained “Hold.”

Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 28.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 533,959 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 117,227 shares during the quarter. Sei Investments Co.'s holdings in Southern were worth $51,538,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Uptick Partners LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Uptick Partners LLC now owns 7,601 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $734,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC raised its position in Southern by 2.4% in the first quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 4,923 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $475,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 15,994 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,395,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Leonteq Securities AG increased its stake in shares of Southern by 4.7% in the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 2,657 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Accredited Investors Inc. raised its holdings in Southern by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 2,446 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO opened at $97.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $109.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.34. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $83.80 and a 1 year high of $100.83. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $94.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $93.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.07 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. Southern's payout ratio is 77.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Seaport Research Partners downgraded shares of Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $104.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 price objective on Southern in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Southern from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 20th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $100.09.

Key Stories Impacting Southern

Here are the key news stories impacting Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Southern’s Georgia Power subsidiary signed a long-term power agreement with OpenAI, which could support future electricity demand and reinforce the company’s role in powering AI data center growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company announced it is joining President Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge, highlighting a customer-first approach focused on rate stability, grid reliability, and responsible growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts remain constructive on near-term earnings, with Zacks saying Southern may have the right setup to beat upcoming results. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: KeyCorp raised its Q4 2026 EPS estimate to $0.60 from $0.55, but kept an Underweight rating and a $79 price target, so the update is mixed despite the higher forecast. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: KeyCorp also trimmed estimates for Southern’s Q3 2026, FY2028, FY2029, and FY2030 earnings, which may weigh on sentiment even though the changes were modest. Article Title

Southern 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.