South Plains Financial Inc. Sells 6,180 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• South Plains Financial Inc. has reduced its stake in Southern Company by 54.3%, now holding 5,194 shares valued at approximately $478,000.
• Southern Company's CEO, Kimberly S. Greene, sold 13,158 shares for over $1.25 million, marking a 12.32% decrease in her position.
• Equity analysts have adjusted their price targets for Southern Company, with target increases from institutions like JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Scotiabank, now setting goals up to $102.00.

South Plains Financial Inc. decreased its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 54.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,194 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,180 shares during the quarter. South Plains Financial Inc.'s holdings in Southern were worth $478,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investors Research Corp lifted its holdings in Southern by 400.0% during the first quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new position in Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new position in Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,897,795. The trade was a 12.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $78.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.36.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of Southern stock traded up $0.24 on Wednesday, hitting $93.33. 3,089,900 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,382,743. The stock has a market capitalization of $102.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.38. 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 Company has a 52 week low of $80.46 and a 52 week high of $96.44. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $93.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $90.71.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.70 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.10 EPS. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. Research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Southern's payout ratio is currently 76.09%.

About Southern

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.