The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Purchased by SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC

SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,086 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 402 shares during the period. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Southern during the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Southern in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE SO traded up $0.69 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $71.74. The stock had a trading volume of 4,731,174 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,607,858. The company has a market capitalization of $78.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.76, a P/E/G ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.49. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $68.43 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.77. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $61.56 and a 52 week high of $75.80.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. Southern had a net margin of 15.79% and a return on equity of 11.40%. The company had revenue of $6.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.26 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 20th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 16th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.90%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.14%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.99, for a total value of $359,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 101,284 shares in the company, valued at $7,291,435.16. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total transaction of $60,286.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,508,984.12. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.99, for a total transaction of $359,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 101,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,291,435.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 25,998 shares of company stock valued at $1,806,063. Insiders own 0.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on SO shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 29th. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, December 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $82.00 price target for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.46.

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.