Northeast Investment Management Makes New Investment in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Northeast Investment Management purchased a new position in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 2,247 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investors Research Corp grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 400.0% during the first quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Elequin Capital LP grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 60.6% during the fourth quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 498 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern Price Performance

Southern stock opened at $89.58 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.38. The Southern Company has a 52-week low of $76.96 and a 52-week high of $94.45. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $89.59 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $87.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.03. Southern had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 16.47%. The company had revenue of $7.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.03 earnings per share. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on SO shares. Barclays upped their target price on Southern from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Southern from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. KeyCorp cut Southern from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $78.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $93.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Southern from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $92.64.

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.