Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Sold by Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd

Key Points

• Dai ichi Life Insurance cut its stake in Southern Company by 7.6% in the first quarter, selling 12,533 shares and leaving it with 153,099 shares valued at about $14.8 million.
• Southern reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.32 beating estimates of $1.21 and revenue of $8.40 billion topping expectations, while revenue rose 8% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.76 per share, equal to an annualized yield of 3.1%, but analysts remain cautious overall with a consensus rating of Hold and a price target around $100.09.

Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd lessened its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 7.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 153,099 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 12,533 shares during the period. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd's holdings in Southern were worth $14,777,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Bollard Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 5.6% during the first quarter. Bollard Group LLC now owns 340,141 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,830,000 after purchasing an additional 18,101 shares during the last quarter. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 13.8% in the 1st quarter. GC Wealth Management RIA LLC now owns 11,385 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 1,381 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its stake in Southern by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 446,060 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $43,054,000 after purchasing an additional 1,307 shares in the last quarter. FCA Corp TX raised its holdings in Southern by 6.8% during the 1st quarter. FCA Corp TX now owns 15,613 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,507,000 after buying an additional 992 shares during the period. Finally, Modern Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Southern by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,409 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,172,000 after buying an additional 1,007 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO opened at $97.29 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $109.67 billion, a PE ratio of 24.76, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company's 50 day moving average price is $94.44 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.69. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.80 and a 52 week high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. The company's revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.35%.

Trending Headlines about Southern

Here are the key news stories impacting Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Southern’s Georgia Power subsidiary signed a long-term power agreement with OpenAI, which could support future electricity demand and reinforce the company’s role in powering AI data center growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The company announced it is joining President Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge, highlighting a customer-first approach focused on rate stability, grid reliability, and responsible growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts remain constructive on near-term earnings, with Zacks saying Southern may have the right setup to beat upcoming results. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: KeyCorp raised its Q4 2026 EPS estimate to $0.60 from $0.55, but kept an Underweight rating and a $79 price target, so the update is mixed despite the higher forecast. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: KeyCorp also trimmed estimates for Southern’s Q3 2026, FY2028, FY2029, and FY2030 earnings, which may weigh on sentiment even though the changes were modest. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on SO. KeyCorp cut shares of Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $79.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday. Seaport Research Partners downgraded shares of Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $100.09.

About Southern

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.

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 reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.