GQG Partners LLC Invests $5.15 Million in Southern Company (The) $SO

GQG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 53,777 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,147,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SO. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $1,111,450,000. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Southern by 22.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 41,142,076 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,587,589,000 after buying an additional 7,593,224 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Southern by 18.7% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 34,459,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,004,866,000 after buying an additional 5,436,212 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $264,829,000. Finally, Soroban Capital Partners LP grew its stake in Southern by 83.8% during the second quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 4,097,422 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $376,266,000 after acquiring an additional 1,867,912 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Down 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $89.09 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $102.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $94.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $83.80 and a 12-month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The company had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 72.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on SO shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 target price on Southern in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. KeyCorp downgraded Southern from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $79.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Seven 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, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.09.

Southern 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.