Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Purchased by AQR Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management increased its stake in Southern Company by 71.8%, owning 460,129 shares valued at approximately $42.3 million.
• Southern Company reported an earnings miss for the last quarter, posting $0.91 EPS against an expected $0.99, but achieved revenues of $6.97 billion, exceeding projections.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.2%, with an ex-dividend date set for August 18th.

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 71.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 460,129 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 192,251 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $42,309,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 1.4% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 104,210,177 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,582,126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,419,724 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Southern by 1.0% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 10,912,663 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,003,419,000 after acquiring an additional 107,394 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Southern by 1.2% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,680,776 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $614,297,000 after acquiring an additional 81,066 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the first quarter worth about $510,229,000. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Southern by 23.2% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,208,872 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $428,794,000 after acquiring an additional 979,756 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Price Performance

Southern stock opened at $91.79 on Friday. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $80.46 and a 1 year high of $96.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $93.51 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.03. The company has a market cap of $100.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.60, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.41. 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 (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The company had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. Southern's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Southern

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southern from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $102.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $94.92.

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.

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