Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC Boosts Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 2.9% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 94,829 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,695 shares during the period. Sound View Wealth Advisors Group LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $8,708,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Southern by 20.3% during the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 228,602 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $21,020,000 after buying an additional 38,587 shares in the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of Southern by 6.1% during the first quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 2,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. increased its position in shares of Southern by 1.6% during the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 156,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,435,000 after acquiring an additional 2,446 shares during the period. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the first quarter valued at $407,000. Finally, Callahan Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Southern by 4.9% in the first quarter. Callahan Advisors LLC now owns 2,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $248,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of Southern stock opened at $91.39 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $80.46 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $94.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.09. Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business had revenue of $7.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI began coverage on Southern in a research report on Monday, October 6th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.50 target price (up previously from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, October 17th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $99.56.

About Southern

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.