The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Acquired by Diversify Advisory Services LLC

Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 40.5% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,222 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,237 shares during the quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,045,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 45.9% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 23,994,733 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,721,382,000 after buying an additional 7,550,570 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 8,741.6% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,502,813 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $135,524,000 after buying an additional 1,485,816 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 2,719.7% during the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 872,373 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $67,670,000 after buying an additional 841,435 shares in the last quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 7,657.0% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 571,148 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $44,304,000 after buying an additional 563,785 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 35.0% during the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 1,929,980 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $138,457,000 after buying an additional 500,000 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $89.38 on Thursday. The Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $65.80 and a fifty-two week high of $94.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $89.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.28, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.66.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.19. Southern had a return on equity of 12.88% and a net margin of 17.67%. The business had revenue of $6.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.10 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.79 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 4.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on SO. Wolfe Research downgraded Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Southern from $83.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Southern news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the company’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 value of $587,830.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,981,575.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total value of $211,796.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,112,375. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 38,945 shares of company stock valued at $3,488,826. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.