Diversify Advisory Services LLC Has $795,000 Stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Diversify Advisory Services LLC cut its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,772 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,450 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $795,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. increased its stake in Southern by 3.8% in the third quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 3,246 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $293,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 6,830 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $616,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Southern by 5.8% in the third quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $198,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Southern by 4.5% during the third quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $256,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,011 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Performance

SO opened at $84.72 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $84.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.36. The company has a market cap of $92.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.70, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.52. The Southern Company has a 1-year low of $65.80 and a 1-year high of $94.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $7.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.14 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 17.87%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.42 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that The Southern Company will post 4.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Southern news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $100,503.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 88,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,592,958.70. The trade was a 1.31 % 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. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Southern Company 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.