Family Legacy Inc. Makes New $3.52 Million Investment in Southern Company (The) $SO

Family Legacy Inc. acquired a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 36,742 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,517,000.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Uptick Partners LLC grew its stake in Southern by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. Uptick Partners LLC now owns 7,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $734,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Southern by 2.4% during the first quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 4,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $475,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Southern by 0.3% during the first quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 34,328 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,313,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 15,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,395,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG grew its position in shares of Southern by 4.7% in the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 2,657 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE SO opened at $92.83 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The company has a market cap of $106.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.26, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.69 and a 200-day moving average of $94.31. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $83.80 and a 1-year high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.23 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Mizuho set a $106.00 price objective on Southern in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $104.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.09.

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.