Swedbank AB Has $4.80 Million Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Swedbank AB increased its holdings in Southern Company by 19.5% during the second quarter, now owning 52,275 shares valued at approximately $4.8 million.
• Southern Company recently reported a missed earnings estimate with $0.91 EPS compared to the consensus of $0.99, despite a 7.9% revenue increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.2% and a payout ratio of 76.09%.

Swedbank AB lifted its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 19.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 52,275 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 8,536 shares during the period. Swedbank AB's holdings in Southern were worth $4,800,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SO. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC grew its position in Southern by 0.7% during the first quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 15,928 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,465,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management grew its position in Southern by 1.1% during the first quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 10,032 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $922,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC grew its position in Southern by 23.0% during the first quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 616 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC grew its position in Southern by 1.9% during the first quarter. PFW Advisors LLC now owns 6,114 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Southern by 1.4% during the first quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 8,565 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $788,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 93,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This trade represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on SO. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $94.92.

Southern Price Performance

NYSE:SO traded up $0.57 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $92.37. 5,569,546 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,935,855. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 12 month low of $80.46 and a 12 month high of $96.44. The stock has a market cap of $101.61 billion, a PE ratio of 23.75, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a fifty day moving average of $93.48 and a 200 day moving average of $91.23.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $6.97 billion during 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $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. On average, research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.09%.

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.