Larson Financial Group LLC Increases Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 125.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,373 shares during the quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $710,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of SO. Vista Capital Partners Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 1.4% during the second quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 8,743 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. raised its position in Southern by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 3,246 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $293,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Southern by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $198,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Southern by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $256,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 1.4% during the second quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $702,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $88.41 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $89.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $96.87 billion, a PE ratio of 20.56, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.52. The Southern Company has a 1-year low of $65.80 and a 1-year high of $94.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released 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 business had revenue of $7.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.14 billion. Southern had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.78%. Southern’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.42 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that The Southern Company will post 4.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.26%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total transaction of $587,830.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,981,575.18. This trade represents a 12.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 145,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,005,688.32. This trade represents a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Southern from $83.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.47.

Southern 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.