UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Raises Holdings in Southern Company (The) $SO

Key Points

• UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its stake in Southern Company by 3.9%, now owning 75,559 shares valued at approximately $6.95 million.
• CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of Southern Company at an average price of $95.00, marking a 12.32% decrease in her holdings.
• Wall Street analysts have set a consensus price target of $94.92 for Southern Company, with ratings ranging from Buy to Hold.

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 3.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,559 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 2,807 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd's holdings in Southern were worth $6,948,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Investors Research Corp boosted its stake in Southern by 400.0% during the 1st quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $39,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $1,250,010.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This trade represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Southern in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $98.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Southern from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Barclays raised their price target on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on Southern from $98.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.92.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of Southern stock opened at $91.79 on Monday. Southern Company has a one year low of $80.46 and a one year high of $96.44. The stock's fifty day moving average is $93.51 and its 200 day moving average is $91.05. The stock has a market cap of $100.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.60, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced 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 the consensus estimate of $6.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.10 earnings per share. Southern's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.09%.

Southern Profile

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.

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