Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Acquired by IFG Advisory LLC

Key Points

• IFG Advisory LLC increased its stake in Southern Company by 12.3% during Q3, ending the period with 115,684 shares valued at about $10.96 million.
• Southern slightly missed Q earnings with $0.55 EPS versus $0.56 expected while revenue rose 10.1% to $6.98 billion, and the company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.74 (annual $2.96) for a ~3.0% yield and a 75.3% payout ratio.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed-to-neutral: the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average target of $97.64, and several firms have trimmed ratings or targets (e.g., Goldman Sachs cut to neutral, UBS lowered its target).

IFG Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 12.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 115,684 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 12,643 shares during the period. IFG Advisory LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $10,963,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SO. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Southern during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 120.1% during the 3rd quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 361 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO opened at $97.67 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $107.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $90.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $91.42. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $83.09 and a 1-year high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The business had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.50 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Southern's dividend payout ratio is currently 75.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on SO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $98.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 price objective on shares of Southern and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $97.64.

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.

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