The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Stock Position Boosted by Reaves W H & Co. Inc.

Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 876,751 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 27,105 shares during the period. Southern accounts for approximately 2.2% of Reaves W H & Co. Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. owned approximately 0.08% of Southern worth $61,478,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 3.9% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 185,232 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,988,000 after acquiring an additional 6,997 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 58.8% in the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 37,456 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,424,000 after buying an additional 13,873 shares during the last quarter. Gratus Capital LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 4.1% in the third quarter. Gratus Capital LLC now owns 6,437 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $417,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Traverso Chambers Private Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Southern by 3.7% in the third quarter. Traverso Chambers Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,018 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $713,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. increased its position in Southern by 12.2% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,771 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $115,000 after buying an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on SO shares. UBS Group cut Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $78.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on Southern from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Southern from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on Southern from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $74.71.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 9,126 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total transaction of $684,815.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 121,504 shares in the company, valued at $9,117,660.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.92, for a total transaction of $344,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,528 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,720,309.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 9,126 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total value of $684,815.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 121,504 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,117,660.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,126 shares of company stock valued at $1,364,115 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Southern Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SO traded down $0.12 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $78.13. 4,939,754 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,441,613. The business's 50-day moving average price is $71.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.93. The Southern Company has a 12 month low of $61.56 and a 12 month high of $78.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.48.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.13. Southern had a net margin of 16.74% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.59 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.79 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. This is a boost from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.35%.

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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