Spire Wealth Management Trims Stock Holdings in Southern Company (The) $SO

Spire Wealth Management decreased its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 9.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,291 shares during the quarter. Spire Wealth Management’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,141,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Ameriflex Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Southern by 275.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Advantage Trust Co grew its holdings in Southern by 1,428.6% during the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the first quarter worth about $36,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $94.20 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $103.62 billion, a PE ratio of 24.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74. Southern Company has a 52-week low of $80.46 and a 52-week high of $100.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $94.28 and a 200 day moving average of $92.47.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $7.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.04 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 15.10%.The company’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.39 earnings per share. Southern has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.300-4.30 EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 0.540-0.540 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on SO. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, October 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $112.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen downgraded Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a “neutral” rating and set a $102.50 target price (up from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Mizuho upped their target price on Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.66.

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.