1832 Asset Management L.P. Acquires 3,293 Shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 11.9% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 30,938 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,293 shares during the quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Southern were worth $2,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. purchased a new position in Southern in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Southern by 62.0% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 3,628.6% in the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. grew its stake in Southern by 63.9% in the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 526 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of SO stock traded up $0.51 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $82.17. 4,010,104 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,083,865. The Southern Company has a 1 year low of $61.56 and a 1 year high of $83.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67. The stock has a market cap of $89.85 billion, a PE ratio of 21.23, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.51. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $79.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $73.55.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $6.65 billion for 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%. Southern’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. Research analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 4.01 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 19th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Argus lifted their target price on Southern from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Southern from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $76.00 price target (up previously from $72.00) on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Southern from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Southern from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $535,509.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 85,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,620,831.49. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Southern news, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $931,320.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,301,597.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $535,509.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 85,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,620,831.49. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 28,026 shares of company stock valued at $2,151,644. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.