The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Sold by OLD Republic International Corp

OLD Republic International Corp trimmed its holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 766,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 9,500 shares during the quarter. Southern accounts for about 2.0% of OLD Republic International Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. OLD Republic International Corp owned 0.07% of Southern worth $53,712,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its holdings in Southern by 63.9% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 526 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. CNB Bank raised its position in shares of Southern by 1,021.4% in the third quarter. CNB Bank now owns 628 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 572 shares during the period. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Cetera Trust Company N.A acquired a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 9,126 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total transaction of $684,815.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 121,504 shares in the company, valued at $9,117,660.16. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Southern news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.92, for a total transaction of $344,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,528 shares in the company, valued at $8,720,309.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 9,126 shares of Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total value of $684,815.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,504 shares in the company, valued at $9,117,660.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 19,126 shares of company stock valued at $1,364,115 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of Southern stock traded down $0.08 on Friday, reaching $78.17. 2,099,471 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,822,003. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $71.22 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.93. The company has a market capitalization of $85.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.92. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $61.56 and a 52 week high of $78.74.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.59 billion. Southern had a net margin of 16.74% and a return on equity of 12.07%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.79 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 3.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a $0.72 dividend. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.68%. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 74.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target (up previously from $72.00) on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, April 1st. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Southern from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Mizuho boosted their price objective on Southern from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Southern from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.71.

About Southern

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.