Southern Company (The) $SO Stock Holdings Increased by National Pension Service

Key Points

• National Pension Service boosted its Southern Company stake by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 2.9 million shares valued at about $252.9 million.
• Southern reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.32 versus the $1.21 estimate and revenue of $8.40 billion, up 8% year over year.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 per share from $0.74, implying an annualized payout of $3.04 and a yield of about 3.3%.

National Pension Service increased its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,900,350 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 146,674 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned 0.26% of Southern worth $252,911,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,155 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $489,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Gentry Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Gentry Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,991 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $473,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,534 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 2,446 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $213,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 28,741 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,724,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on SO shares. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Mizuho set a $105.00 price target on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, February 20th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $99.38.

Southern Stock Down 0.5%

Southern stock opened at $92.06 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $103.78 billion, a PE ratio of 23.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.36. 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 firm's 50 day moving average price is $94.61 and its two-hundred 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.

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

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. 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. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.35%.

Insider Activity at Southern

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

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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