Phocas Financial Corp. Takes $123,000 Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Phocas Financial Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO – Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 1,720 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $123,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SO. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Karp Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Worth Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Southern by 1,944.4% in the 3rd quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC now owns 736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its stake in shares of Southern by 26.9% in the 3rd quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 943 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 61.78% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $67.90 on Friday. The Southern Company has a 1-year low of $58.85 and a 1-year high of $80.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.94 billion, a PE ratio of 20.70, a PEG ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.49. The business’s 50 day moving average is $66.86 and its 200-day moving average is $68.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47.

Southern (NYSE:SO – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 16th. The utilities provider reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.24 by $0.02. Southern had a return on equity of 11.73% and a net margin of 12.40%. The company had revenue of $7.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.36 EPS. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 3.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 21st were issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is presently 82.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Southern from $68.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 16th. Credit Suisse Group raised their price objective on Southern from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Southern from $73.00 to $71.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 17th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Southern in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “sell” rating on the stock. Finally, Mizuho cut their price objective on Southern from $73.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $71.93.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 852 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.31, for a total value of $57,348.12. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,059 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,484,791.29. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 14,546 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.95, for a total value of $1,032,038.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 120,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,569,766.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 852 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.31, for a total value of $57,348.12. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,059 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,484,791.29. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 16,680 shares of company stock valued at $1,174,768. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Southern

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The Southern Co is a holding company, which engages in the generation and sale of electricity. It operates through the following segments: Traditional Electric Operating Companies, Southern Power and Southern Company Gas. The Traditional Electric Operating Companies segment refers to vertically integrated utilities that own generation, transmission and distribution facilities, and supplies electric services in the states of Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and Mississippi.