Essex LLC Decreases Stock Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Essex LLC reduced its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,881 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 590 shares during the quarter. Essex LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $2,424,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlas Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $548,000. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Southern by 5.5% during the third quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $588,000 after buying an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Hardin Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern in the third quarter worth $218,000. Pure Portfolios Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the third quarter valued at $298,000. Finally, Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 1.1% during the third quarter. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI now owns 62,906 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,673,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $93.24 on Friday. 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 Southern Company has a 1 year low of $64.53 and a 1 year high of $93.35. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $88.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.71. The firm has a market cap of $101.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.09, a PEG ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.52.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.19. Southern had a return on equity of 12.88% and a net margin of 17.67%. The company had revenue of $6.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group boosted their target price 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, Wolfe Research lowered shares of Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.07.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In related news, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total transaction of $211,796.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,500 shares in the company, valued at $1,112,375. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares in the company, valued at $3,981,575.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total value of $211,796.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,500 shares in the company, valued at $1,112,375. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 38,945 shares of company stock worth $3,488,826. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.