iSAM Funds UK Ltd Acquires New Shares in Southern Company (The) $SO

iSAM Funds UK Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 49,867 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,726,000. Southern comprises about 1.0% of iSAM Funds UK Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 21,461 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,034,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,443,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,485,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Sara Bay Financial raised its position in Southern by 2.7% during the third quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 4,133 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Southern by 2.1% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $489,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. KeyCorp raised Southern from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Southern from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.08.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:SO opened at $98.06 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $107.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.44. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $91.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.59. Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $83.09 and a fifty-two week high of $100.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.41 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.50 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Southern 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.