Johnson Financial Group Inc. Boosts Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Johnson Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 216.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,884 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 8,124 shares during the period. Johnson Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Southern were worth $998,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Chelsea Counsel Co. raised its position in Southern by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 2,755 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its position in Southern by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 76,952 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,940,000 after purchasing an additional 347 shares in the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,410 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,480,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 106.4% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,082 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $999,000 after acquiring an additional 5,713 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,361,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Southern

In other Southern news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,125 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.61, for a total transaction of $100,811.25. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 102,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,148,284.90. The trade was a 1.09 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 32,190 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.12, for a total transaction of $2,997,532.80. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 106,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,946,985.28. This trade represents a 23.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 47,855 shares of company stock valued at $4,348,784. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO stock traded up $0.71 on Tuesday, hitting $91.46. The company had a trading volume of 3,234,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,468,288. The firm has a market cap of $100.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.39. The Southern Company has a twelve month low of $73.20 and a twelve month high of $94.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $89.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.38.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.01). Southern had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 16.47%. The business had revenue of $6.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.90 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SO. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Mizuho boosted their target price on Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim downgraded Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Southern from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $94.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Southern from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $92.54.

Southern Company 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.