Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan Has $2.34 Million Stake in Southern Company (The) $SO

Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan grew its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 27.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 26,772 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,840 shares during the period. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan’s holdings in Southern were worth $2,335,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Southern by 6.3% in the fourth quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 460,252 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,134,000 after purchasing an additional 27,341 shares during the last quarter. Noesis Capital Mangement Corp grew its position in shares of Southern by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Noesis Capital Mangement Corp now owns 2,671 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co grew its position in shares of Southern by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 12,917 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,126,000 after purchasing an additional 1,338 shares during the last quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. grew its position in shares of Southern by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 1,539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $134,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everstar Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Southern by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Everstar Asset Management LLC now owns 16,349 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,370,000 after purchasing an additional 1,621 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This trade represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. The trade was a 19.44% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of SO stock opened at $92.56 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The stock has a market cap of $104.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $95.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $91.77. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $83.80 and a 1 year high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 75.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on SO shares. Weiss Ratings raised Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Barclays boosted their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho set a $105.00 price target on Southern in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $99.85.

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.