Southern Company (The) $SO Stock Position Lessened by Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 2.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 257,379 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,909 shares during the quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Southern were worth $24,392,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SO. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Southern by 320.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 33,548,852 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,179,425,000 after buying an additional 25,567,431 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Southern during the second quarter worth approximately $1,179,715,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Southern by 9,099.6% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,421,331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $406,011,000 after purchasing an additional 4,373,271 shares during the period. Soroban Capital Partners LP boosted its stake in Southern by 83.8% during the 2nd quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 4,097,422 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $376,266,000 after purchasing an additional 1,867,912 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Soundwatch Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at $103,342,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Performance

SO stock opened at $96.22 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $91.72. The stock has a market cap of $105.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.44. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.09 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.65.

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

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Southern’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SO. Evercore upgraded Southern from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $111.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. Barclays dropped their price target on Southern from $91.00 to $88.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Mizuho set a $104.00 target price on Southern and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, February 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.08.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction of $643,891.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

About Southern

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.