Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC Cuts Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lessened its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 6.8% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 89,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,567 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $8,549,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Evergreen Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the first quarter worth $25,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Ankerstar Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC bought a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Down 0.1%

SO opened at $93.15 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $94.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $94.15. Southern Company has a twelve month low of $83.80 and a twelve month high of $100.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.79 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 72.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $100.26.

Southern Company Profile

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.