Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Bought by Vise Technologies Inc.

Vise Technologies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 47.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 43,729 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 14,094 shares during the quarter. Vise Technologies Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $3,813,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in Southern during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in Southern in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Beacon Financial Strategies CORP purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Up 1.2%

SO opened at $92.74 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $94.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.65. Southern Company has a one year low of $83.80 and a one year high of $100.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $104.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The business had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is an increase from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Southern’s payout ratio is presently 77.35%.

Insider Transactions at Southern

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on SO. Weiss Ratings upgraded Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. KeyCorp upgraded Southern from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $104.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Seaport Research Partners cut Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $99.38.

About Southern

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.