Savant Capital LLC Boosts Stock Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 228,380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,132 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $18,800,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of 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 valued at $293,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC increased its stake 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 worth $616,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in Southern by 5.8% during the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Southern by 4.5% in 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 boosted its holdings in Southern by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,011 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Performance

SO stock opened at $84.53 on Monday. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $65.80 and a 52 week high of $94.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $92.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $83.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $86.69.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid 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 3.41%. Southern’s payout ratio is 66.98%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,592,958.70. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Mizuho raised their target price on Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim cut shares of Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.79.

Southern 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.