Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Has $1.14 Million Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 76.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,101 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,658 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,142,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 2.1% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $489,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Gentry Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 2.3% in the third quarter. Gentry Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,991 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $473,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.9% in the third quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 2,446 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobi Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.4% in the third quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 28,741 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,724,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Southern from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.56.

Southern Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $94.67 on Friday. Southern Company has a one year low of $83.80 and a one year high of $100.83. The company has a 50 day moving average of $95.06 and a 200-day moving average of $91.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market cap of $106.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.36.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a net margin of 14.46% and a return on equity of 12.64%. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. Southern’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is an increase from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Southern Profile

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an Atlanta-based energy holding company that provides electric and gas utility services and owns power generation assets across the United States. Founded in 1945, the company operates a portfolio of regulated electric utilities and affiliated businesses that generate, transmit and distribute electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Southern’s principal regulated electric subsidiaries include Georgia Power, Alabama Power and Mississippi Power, which serve large portions of the southeastern United States.