Graypoint LLC Boosts Stock Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Graypoint LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the quarter. Graypoint LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $461,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. RVW Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 63.9% in the 4th quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 526 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 205 shares during the period. Finally, CNB Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 1,021.4% in the 3rd quarter. CNB Bank now owns 628 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 572 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Down 1.2 %

Southern stock opened at $68.73 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.77. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.93. The company has a market cap of $75.23 billion, a PE ratio of 18.93, a PEG ratio of 4.29 and a beta of 0.49. The Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $61.56 and a fifty-two week high of $75.80.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Southern had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 15.79%. The firm had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.07%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on SO. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, February 21st. Barclays reduced their price target on Southern from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 17th. Mizuho upped their target price on Southern from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. UBS Group lowered Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $78.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $74.14.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.94, for a total value of $334,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 129,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,672,210.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.94, for a total value of $334,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 129,552 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,672,210.88. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider David P. Poroch sold 10,099 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.96, for a total value of $706,526.04. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 28,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,007,222.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 20,998 shares of company stock valued at $1,446,113. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Southern

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.