Southern Company (The) $SO Stake Boosted by Cibc World Market Inc.

Key Points

• CIBC World Market Inc. boosted its stake in Southern Company by 406.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 136,455 shares valued at about $11.9 million.
• Southern reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings of $1.32 per share versus $1.21 expected and revenue of $8.40 billion versus $8.07 billion expected.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.74, implying an annualized dividend of $3.04 and a yield of about 3.3%.

Cibc World Market Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 406.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 136,455 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 109,538 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Market Inc.'s holdings in Southern were worth $11,899,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID purchased a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Beacon Financial Strategies CORP purchased a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. The trade was a 19.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This trade represents a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Southern Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $92.74 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $104.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.60, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.34. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $91.83. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.80 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.65.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.07 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This is an increase from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Southern's dividend payout ratio is presently 77.35%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on SO. Weiss Ratings raised Southern from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Seaport Research Partners cut Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $99.38.

Southern 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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