Country Club Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO – Free Report) by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 14,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,280 shares during the period. Country Club Bank’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,283,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 275.0% during the second quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
A number of brokerages have issued reports on SO. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Southern from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $99.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday. Mizuho raised their target price on Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI began coverage on Southern in a report on Monday. They set an “in-line” rating and a $103.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.77.
Insider Buying and Selling at Southern
In other news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,897,795. This trade represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Southern Trading Up 0.9%
NYSE SO opened at $96.39 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $106.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $93.50 and its 200-day moving average is $91.56. Southern Company has a one year low of $80.46 and a one year high of $96.77.
Southern (NYSE:SO – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Southern Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 18th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.09%.
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.
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