Visionary Wealth Advisors Purchases Shares of 112,104 Southern Company (The) $SO

Visionary Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 112,104 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $10,730,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SO. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Southern by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,057,413 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,422,606,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643,090 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Southern by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 41,142,076 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,587,589,000 after purchasing an additional 7,593,224 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of Southern by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 34,459,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,004,866,000 after purchasing an additional 5,436,212 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Southern by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,259,125 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,381,344,000 after purchasing an additional 384,860 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,111,450,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SO has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Southern from $92.00 to $89.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 price objective on Southern in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.09.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:SO opened at $90.10 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $103.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $83.80 and a 1 year high of $100.83. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $94.45 and a 200-day moving average of $94.44.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The business had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 72.90%.

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.