Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Bought by Plan Group Financial LLC

Plan Group Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 29.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,633 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,586 shares during the period. Plan Group Financial LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $2,714,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Southern by 17.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,003 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,127,000 after purchasing an additional 5,067 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter valued at $4,022,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southern by 37.0% in the 2nd quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $186,000 after acquiring an additional 547 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 14,079 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,293,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 21,272 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,953,000 after acquiring an additional 432 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE:SO opened at $87.49 on Wednesday. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $81.41 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $88.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.09. Southern had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 15.42%.The firm had revenue of $7.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.39 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, October 27th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Wall Street Zen cut Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $98.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $96.21.

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.