Capital Investment Advisors LLC Buys 9,451 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 635,316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,451 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $55,400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern during the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Donaldson Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Southern by 2,785.8% during the third quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 563,027 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $53,358,000 after buying an additional 543,517 shares during the period. Matrix Trust Co bought a new position in Southern during the third quarter valued at $1,813,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in Southern during the third quarter valued at $4,852,000. Finally, Shelton Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Southern by 700.6% in the second quarter. Shelton Capital Management now owns 161,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,841,000 after acquiring an additional 141,430 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other Southern news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.1%

NYSE:SO opened at $95.51 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.30, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $93.42 and a 200 day moving average of $91.83. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.09 and a 52 week high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.41 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 14.69%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 75.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SO shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, February 20th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Southern from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Scotiabank upped their target price on Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 target price on shares of Southern and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.08.

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.