The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Purchased by FCG Investment Co

FCG Investment Co lifted its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 28.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 13,454 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,990 shares during the quarter. FCG Investment Co’s holdings in Southern were worth $965,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Good Life Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Southern by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 19,956 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,399,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Insight Inv LLC grew its position in Southern by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 10,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $738,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN boosted its position in Southern by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 20,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,454,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. CNB Bank lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 23.9% in the 4th quarter. CNB Bank now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC raised its position in Southern by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 11,767 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $825,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Price Performance

NYSE:SO traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $77.72. The stock had a trading volume of 1,432,802 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,629,153. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.92. The Southern Company has a one year low of $61.56 and a one year high of $80.84. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $77.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.39.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.13. Southern had a return on equity of 12.07% and a net margin of 16.74%. The business had revenue of $6.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that The Southern Company will post 4 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.71%. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is 74.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Southern from $72.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Southern from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. UBS Group lowered shares of Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $78.00 to $76.00 in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Argus raised their target price on Southern from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target (up from $72.00) on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, April 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $76.14.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other news, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $931,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,301,597.31. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 9,126 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total value of $684,815.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,504 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,117,660.16. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $931,320.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,301,597.31. 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.