Greenleaf Trust Trims Stock Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Greenleaf Trust cut its stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 28,704 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,442 shares during the quarter. Greenleaf Trust’s holdings in Southern were worth $2,363,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Southern by 168.1% in the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. West Branch Capital LLC boosted its stake in Southern by 34.7% in the 3rd quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $49,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:SO opened at $83.91 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $83.92 and its 200 day moving average is $86.60. The Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $65.80 and a fifty-two week high of $94.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. Southern had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 17.87%. The company had revenue of $7.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.42 EPS. Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.43%. Southern’s payout ratio is presently 66.98%.

Insider Activity at Southern

In other Southern news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $100,503.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 88,393 shares in the company, valued at $7,592,958.70. This trade represents a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Guggenheim downgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Scotiabank upped their price target on Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.14.

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.