T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Makes New Investment in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. has acquired a new stake in Southern Company, purchasing 4,671 shares valued at approximately $430,000.
• Southern Company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.2% and a payout ratio of 76.09%.
• The stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" among analysts, with a consensus target price of $94.36.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 4,671 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $430,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tradition Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 4.3% in the first quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,083 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $651,000 after buying an additional 295 shares during the period. Venture Visionary Partners LLC increased its position in Southern by 5.5% during the first quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 19,986 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,838,000 after acquiring an additional 1,034 shares during the period. Credit Agricole S A increased its holdings in Southern by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Credit Agricole S A now owns 321,244 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,538,000 after buying an additional 25,290 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 30.3% in the 1st quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 143,635 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $13,218,000 after purchasing an additional 33,436 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 5,425 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $499,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,010.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at $8,897,795. The trade was a 12.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% 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 5,117,155. 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 has a market cap of $101.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.74, a PEG ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.38. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $93.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.76.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 15.10%.The company had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Southern's payout ratio is 76.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on SO. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating and set a $93.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southern from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Southern from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Southern from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average 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.