The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) is Confluence Investment Management LLC’s 8th Largest Position

Confluence Investment Management LLC decreased its position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 1.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,672,649 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 32,913 shares during the quarter. Southern makes up 2.0% of Confluence Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Confluence Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $150,840,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Southern by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 100,089,634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,180,430,000 after acquiring an additional 481,071 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Southern by 45.9% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 23,994,733 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,721,382,000 after purchasing an additional 7,550,570 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Southern by 5.7% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,718,040 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $245,113,000 after buying an additional 145,810 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 2.1% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,542,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $197,192,000 after buying an additional 51,751 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its position in shares of Southern by 13.0% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,420,890 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $218,316,000 after acquiring an additional 279,304 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of Southern stock opened at $86.93 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $89.86 and its 200 day moving average is $83.62. The Southern Company has a one year low of $65.80 and a one year high of $94.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.91. The stock has a market cap of $95.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.22, a P/E/G ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.52.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $7.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.14 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 17.87%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total value of $587,830.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total value of $587,830.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,467 shares in the company, valued at $3,981,575.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.64, for a total value of $2,689,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 145,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,005,688.32. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the company. Guggenheim increased their target price on Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Southern in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $94.00 target price for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.27.

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.