Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Sold by Patrick Mauro Investment Advisor INC.

Key Points

• Patrick Mauro Investment Advisor INC. cut its Southern Company stake by 35.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 12,727 shares and leaving it with 23,582 shares worth about $2.06 million.
• Southern reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.32 versus the $1.21 consensus and revenue of $8.40 billion, up 8% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share, bringing the annualized payout to $3.04 and the yield to 3.3%.

Patrick Mauro Investment Advisor INC. decreased its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 35.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 23,582 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 12,727 shares during the period. Patrick Mauro Investment Advisor INC.'s holdings in Southern were worth $2,056,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Southern by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,057,413 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,422,606,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643,090 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Southern by 320.3% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 33,548,852 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,179,425,000 after purchasing an additional 25,567,431 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,259,125 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,381,344,000 after purchasing an additional 384,860 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $1,111,450,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in Southern by 3.5% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,532,530 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $808,628,000 after purchasing an additional 285,546 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, April 10th. Scotiabank upped their target price on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley restated an "underweight" rating and issued a $87.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $99.38.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO opened at $92.06 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $94.61 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.84. Southern Company has a twelve month low of $83.80 and a twelve month high of $100.83. The company has a market capitalization of $103.78 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.35%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at $2,973,740. This trade represents a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Southern Company Profile

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.

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