Stock Traders Purchase Large Volume of Southern Put Options (NYSE:SO)

Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors purchased 7,514 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 71% compared to the average volume of 4,392 put options.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its position in Southern by 275.0% in the second quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in Southern during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Advantage Trust Co increased its position in shares of Southern by 1,428.6% during the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Cowen started coverage on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on Southern from $98.00 to $91.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on Southern in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $99.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $102.50 target price (up previously from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, October 17th. One equities research 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $99.03.

Southern Trading Down 1.2%

Shares of SO stock opened at $86.25 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern has a twelve month low of $80.46 and a twelve month high of $100.83. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $93.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.45. The stock has a market cap of $94.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.35, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is presently 73.27%.

Southern Company Profile

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.