Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas Acquires 12,693 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas grew its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 104.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,885 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 12,693 shares during the period. Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas’ holdings in Southern were worth $2,170,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of SO. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 320.3% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 33,548,852 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,179,425,000 after purchasing an additional 25,567,431 shares in the last quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP increased its position in shares of Southern by 83.8% during the 2nd quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 4,097,422 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $376,266,000 after purchasing an additional 1,867,912 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Southern by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,057,413 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,422,606,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643,090 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its position in shares of Southern by 1,518.4% during the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,044,101 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $95,880,000 after purchasing an additional 979,587 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its position in shares of Southern by 790.6% during the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 811,737 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $74,542,000 after purchasing an additional 720,589 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on SO. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 target price on Southern and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $104.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Mizuho set a $105.00 price objective on Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on Southern in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.56.

Southern Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $93.72 on Thursday. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.80 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The company has a market cap of $105.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.36.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $8.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 77.35%.

Insider Activity

In other Southern news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at $2,973,740. This trade represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.