Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. Makes New $2.05 Million Investment in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 24,898 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,050,000. Southern makes up about 2.1% of Measured Risk Portfolios Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SO. Meketa Capital LLC purchased a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $767,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Southern by 15.4% in the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 123,466 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $10,164,000 after acquiring an additional 16,433 shares during the period. MJP Associates Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 2,605 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $214,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $21,478,000. Finally, Investor s Fiduciary Advisor Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,337,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Stock Down 2.9%

SO opened at $87.74 on Tuesday. The Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $76.64 and a fifty-two week high of $94.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $90.22 and a 200-day moving average of $87.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $96.43 billion, a PE ratio of 21.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.40.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.03. Southern had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 16.47%. The company had revenue of $7.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.17 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.03 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that The Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. This is a positive change from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $93.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Southern from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Mizuho increased their price target on Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Southern from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Southern from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $93.07.

Insider Transactions at Southern

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

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.

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