Teacher Retirement System of Texas Sells 81,128 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• Teacher Retirement System of Texas trimmed its stake in Southern Company by 26.3%, selling 81,128 shares and leaving it with 227,333 shares worth about $19.8 million.
• Company insiders also sold recently: CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares (a 19.44% cut) and EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares, signaling notable insider selling.
• Southern raised its quarterly dividend to $0.76 (annualized $3.04), implying a 3.3% yield and a dividend payout ratio of 75.3%.

Teacher Retirement System of Texas trimmed its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 26.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 227,333 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 81,128 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in Southern were worth $19,823,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SO. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Southern in the third quarter worth $29,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new position in Southern in the third quarter worth $29,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new position in Southern in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. bought a new position in Southern in the third quarter worth $34,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on SO shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. TD Cowen raised their target price on Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Mizuho set a $104.00 target price on Southern and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, KeyCorp raised Southern from an "underweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $99.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This trade represents a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction 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 directly owned 30,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Southern Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $93.52 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $105.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.80, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a fifty day moving average of $95.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.18. Southern Company has a 52-week low of $83.09 and a 52-week high of $100.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.65.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.41 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The firm's revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share 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 issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 18th. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 75.32%.

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.

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.