Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Southern Company has a consensus “Hold” rating from 20 analysts: 11 holds, seven buys and two sells. The average 12-month price target is approximately $100.26, versus a recent share price of $91.86.
• Southern’s latest quarterly earnings exceeded expectations, with EPS of $1.13 versus the $1.01 consensus estimate, although revenue of $6.98 billion fell short of forecasts.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.76, equivalent to $3.04 annually and a 3.3% yield; institutional investors own 64.1% of its shares.

Shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the twenty ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $100.2647.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on SO. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Seaport Research Partners lowered Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Mizuho set a $106.00 price target on Southern in a report on Friday, July 31st.

Southern Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $91.86 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $94.63 and a 200 day moving average of $94.25. The company has a market cap of $105.67 billion, a PE ratio of 22.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Southern has a 12-month low of $83.80 and a 12-month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The company had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.79 EPS. The firm's revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Southern will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Southern's dividend payout ratio is 72.90%.

Institutional Trading of Southern

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Evergreen Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the first quarter worth $25,000. Ankerstar Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

About Southern

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.

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