The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Sold by First National Corp MA ADV

First National Corp MA ADV trimmed its stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 240 shares during the period. First National Corp MA ADV’s holdings in Southern were worth $674,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of SO. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $60,286.94. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,508,984.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Southern news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.99, for a total value of $359,950.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 101,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,291,435.16. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total transaction of $60,286.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,502 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,508,984.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 25,998 shares of company stock worth $1,806,063. 0.28% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on SO shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Southern from $68.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.46.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO stock opened at $71.05 on Thursday. The Southern Company has a 12 month low of $61.56 and a 12 month high of $75.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.49. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $68.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.79% and a return on equity of 11.40%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.26 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 20th were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.94%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.14%.

Southern Profile

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.