The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Acquired by Argus Investors Counsel Inc.

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,056 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the period. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. increased its stake in Southern by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 3,246 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 1.8% during the third quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 6,830 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $616,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. DT Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 5.8% during the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 4.5% during the third quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC grew its position in Southern by 4.3% in the third quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,011 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE SO opened at $83.84 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $91.86 billion, a PE ratio of 19.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a fifty day moving average of $83.70 and a 200 day moving average of $86.67. The Southern Company has a 1 year low of $65.80 and a 1 year high of $94.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.66.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Southern news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $100,503.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 88,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,592,958.70. The trade was a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SO has been the topic of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays increased their price target on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Guggenheim downgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho raised their price target on Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $89.79.

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.