Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec Acquires 165,428 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec significantly increased its stake in Southern Company by 99.2% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 165,428 shares, bringing its total holdings to 332,241 shares valued at $30.55 million.
• Several analysts have recently adjusted their price targets for Southern Company, with the stock receiving a mixture of "buy," "hold," and "sell" ratings from research firms, resulting in an average target price of $94.36.
• Southern Company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, which will be paid to investors on September 8th, reflecting a 3.2% yield based on its current annualized dividend.

Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 99.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 332,241 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 165,428 shares during the period. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec's holdings in Southern were worth $30,550,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investors Research Corp increased its holdings in Southern by 400.0% in the 1st quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.1%

SO stock traded up $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $92.34. The company had a trading volume of 3,227,614 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,702,597. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $80.46 and a 52 week high of $96.44. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $93.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.80. The stock has a market cap of $101.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.38.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $6.70 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. The business'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. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The stock was 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 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. KeyCorp lowered Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $78.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays lifted their target price on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Southern in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Southern from $98.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $94.92.

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.