Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Bought by Chesapeake Wealth Management

Key Points

• Chesapeake Wealth Management increased its stake in Southern Company by 145.9% in Q2, owning 7,801 shares worth $716,000 after acquiring 4,628 shares during the quarter.
• Southern Company missed its quarterly earnings estimate, reporting $0.91 EPS compared to the expected $0.99, but achieved revenues of $6.97 billion, exceeding analyst expectations.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.0% and a payout ratio of 76.09%.

Chesapeake Wealth Management raised its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 145.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,801 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,628 shares during the quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management's holdings in Southern were worth $716,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Southern by 275.0% in the second quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Southern stock opened at $99.80 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $93.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.78 billion, a PE ratio of 25.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.43. 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 one year low of $80.46 and a one year high of $99.81.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 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 analyst estimates of $6.70 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 15.10%.The business's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were given a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio is presently 76.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on SO. UBS Group lifted their price target on Southern from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Southern from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI began coverage on Southern in a research report on Monday, October 6th. They set an "in-line" rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Barclays set a $70.00 price objective on Southern in a research report on Tuesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $96.85.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at $8,897,795. This represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SO? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.