Eventide Asset Management LLC Sells 295,557 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Eventide Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 72.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 110,842 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 295,557 shares during the quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $9,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strive Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Spirepoint Private Client LLC increased its stake in Southern by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Spirepoint Private Client LLC now owns 97,631 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,513,000 after acquiring an additional 11,460 shares during the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO increased its stake in Southern by 243.3% in the fourth quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 20,816 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,815,000 after acquiring an additional 14,753 shares during the last quarter. Marble Wealth LLC bought a new position in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,443,000. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,462,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SO. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Southern from $103.00 to $100.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $87.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 price objective on shares of Southern and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Mizuho set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $99.38.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $93.90 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $105.85 billion, a PE ratio of 23.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.34. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $93.95 and its 200-day moving average is $91.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.65. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.80 and a 52 week high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.07 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. Southern’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. This is a boost from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.35%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This trade represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Southern Company 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.