10,908 Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Purchased by Welch Group LLC

Welch Group LLC raised its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 798,749 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,908 shares during the period. Southern accounts for 2.3% of Welch Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Welch Group LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $66,208,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 4.9% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 8,380,592 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $808,895,000 after acquiring an additional 392,210 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Southern during the second quarter worth approximately $737,256,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in Southern by 9.8% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,681,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $543,793,000 after buying an additional 508,149 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of Southern by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 3,231,400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $311,895,000 after acquiring an additional 216,900 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,932,978 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $280,715,000 after acquiring an additional 54,111 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO stock opened at $93.70 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $87.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.35. The firm has a market cap of $107.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.47, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.30. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $81.69 and a 1 year high of $99.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.79.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The firm had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.23 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Southern from $97.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Southern from $96.00 to $95.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. DA Davidson set a $98.00 price target on Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Southern from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.24.

Southern Profile

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an energy holding company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Through its subsidiaries, the company generates, transmits, distributes and sells electricity, while also providing natural gas distribution and related energy services.

Southern’s electric utility operations include Alabama Power, Georgia Power and Mississippi Power, which serve customers across Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. The company’s generation portfolio includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and renewable energy resources.