Requisite Capital Management LLC Takes Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Requisite Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 5,870 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $512,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the third quarter worth $25,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the third quarter worth $29,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the third quarter worth $29,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.0%

NYSE:SO opened at $92.56 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $104.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.55, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.36. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.77. Southern Company has a 12 month low of $83.80 and a 12 month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.07 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. The business’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. The trade was a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $102.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $99.85.

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.