The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Stock Position Decreased by Keudell Morrison Wealth Management

Keudell Morrison Wealth Management cut its stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 10,282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,386 shares during the quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management’s holdings in Southern were worth $927,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of SO. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the first quarter worth $39,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 63.2% in the first quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the second quarter worth $39,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Southern by 31.8% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 585 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the period. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 34.7% in the third quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of Southern stock traded down $0.35 during trading on Thursday, reaching $87.07. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 418,328 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,445,527. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $89.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.62. The firm has a market cap of $95.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.52. The Southern Company has a one year low of $65.80 and a one year high of $94.45.

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

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 presently 66.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SO has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Southern from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays increased their price objective on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on Southern from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $89.27.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated 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 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated 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 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The shares were 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 directly owns 145,088 shares in the company, valued at $13,005,688.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.