Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Purchased by Odyssean LLC

Odyssean LLC boosted its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 105.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,626 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,222 shares during the quarter. Odyssean LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $3,027,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 17.5% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,003 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,127,000 after acquiring an additional 5,067 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. raised its stake in Southern by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 59,217 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,438,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at $655,000. Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in Southern by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 449,960 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,320,000 after purchasing an additional 46,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in Southern by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 514,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,268,000 after purchasing an additional 13,392 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO opened at $89.95 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $103.47 billion, a PE ratio of 21.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Southern Company has a twelve month low of $83.80 and a twelve month high of $100.83. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.44.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The firm had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. Southern’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.90%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on SO shares. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Mizuho set a $106.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.09.

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.