Great Lakes Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Great Lakes Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,605 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 9,755 shares during the period. Great Lakes Advisors LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $3,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 275.0% in the second quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Advantage Trust Co boosted its stake in Southern by 1,428.6% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 120.1% during the 3rd quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 361 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Price Performance

NYSE:SO opened at $89.32 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.35 billion, a PE ratio of 22.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.46. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $82.78 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $87.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $7.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.04 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 12.52%. Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.39 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Southern’s payout ratio is 73.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SO. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $102.50 price objective (up from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, October 17th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Southern from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $97.00 to $84.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Southern from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 15th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $94.91.

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.