Southern Company (The) $SO Position Decreased by Confluence Wealth Services Inc.

Confluence Wealth Services Inc. reduced its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 30.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 16,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,239 shares during the period. Confluence Wealth Services Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,374,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. AMG National Trust Bank grew its position in Southern by 17.2% in the third quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 5,120 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $424,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares in the last quarter. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. raised its position in Southern by 23.8% during the third quarter. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. now owns 62,722 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,199,000 after purchasing an additional 12,070 shares in the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 5.3% during the third quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 172,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,273,000 after purchasing an additional 8,701 shares during the last quarter. Csenge Advisory Group lifted its stake in Southern by 10.7% during the third quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 68,086 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,644,000 after purchasing an additional 6,586 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New York Life Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 1.8% during the third quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 159,941 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,258,000 after purchasing an additional 2,901 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $93.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $109.14 billion, a PE ratio of 18.96, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.30. The company’s fifty day moving average is $88.49 and its 200 day moving average is $92.56. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $81.69 and a 52 week high of $99.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.23. Southern had a net margin of 16.00% and a return on equity of 13.57%. The business had revenue of $8.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.54 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. Southern’s payout ratio is 69.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SO. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Southern from $96.00 to $95.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 20th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Southern from $114.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 25th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Southern from $97.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on Southern from $101.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Monday, October 26th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $97.32.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, EVP Sterling Spainhour, Jr. sold 3,333 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.81, for a total transaction of $306,002.73. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 31,886 shares in the company, valued at $2,927,453.66. This represents a 9.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Southern Profile

Southern Company is an energy holding company based in Atlanta, Georgia. Through its subsidiaries, it generates, transmits and distributes electricity and provides natural gas service, primarily across the southeastern United States. Its electric utility businesses include Alabama Power, Georgia Power and Mississippi Power, which serve customers in their respective states. Southern Company also owns Southern Power, which develops and operates wholesale power generation assets, and Southern Company Gas, whose businesses distribute natural gas to customers in several states.