Sound Income Strategies LLC Trims Holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Sound Income Strategies LLC lowered its holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 56.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,232 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,244 shares during the quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $297,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Investors Research Corp raised its holdings in Southern by 400.0% in the 1st quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Elequin Capital LP lifted its position in Southern by 60.6% in the fourth quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 498 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Southern stock traded down $1.47 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $88.88. 5,372,782 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,568,090. The stock has a market cap of $97.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.38. The firm's 50 day moving average is $89.71 and its 200 day moving average is $87.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.67. The Southern Company has a 52-week low of $76.96 and a 52-week high of $94.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.03. Southern had a net margin of 16.47% and a return on equity of 12.23%. The firm had revenue of $7.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.03 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.74 dividend. This is a positive change from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Southern's payout ratio is currently 70.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently issued reports on SO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Southern from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $94.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on Southern from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Raymond James initiated coverage on Southern in a report on Friday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating and set a $93.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $93.00.

Southern 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.