The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Purchased by Advance Capital Management Inc.

Advance Capital Management Inc. raised its position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the quarter. Advance Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vista Capital Partners Inc. grew its position 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 buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. grew its holdings in Southern by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 3,246 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $293,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 6,830 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $616,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 5.8% in the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 4.5% in the third quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO traded down $1.55 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $80.77. 5,244,165 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,818,019. The Southern Company has a 12-month low of $65.80 and a 12-month high of $94.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $86.05 and a 200 day moving average of $86.02. The company has a market cap of $88.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. The firm 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%. Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.42 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that The Southern Company will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Southern’s payout ratio is 66.98%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on SO. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim lifted their target price on Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $90.14.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $100,503.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 88,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,592,958.70. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.