17,308 Shares in Southern Company (The) $SO Purchased by WJ Financial Advisors LLC

WJ Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 17,308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,640,000. Southern accounts for approximately 1.6% of WJ Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 17.5% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,003 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,127,000 after purchasing an additional 5,067 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of Southern by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 403,551 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,058,000 after buying an additional 9,590 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southern by 9.0% during the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 25,524 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,344,000 after buying an additional 2,100 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 18.1% in the second quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 20,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,840,000 after acquiring an additional 3,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the second quarter worth about $670,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Up 2.6%

Southern stock opened at $94.93 on Friday. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $83.09 and a 1-year high of $100.83. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $87.90 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $104.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.50, a PEG ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.45.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 73.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on SO. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of Southern from $87.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Southern in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Barclays lowered their target price on Southern from $91.00 to $88.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 15th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.91.

Southern Company Profile

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.