Peoples Financial Services CORP. Sells 1,149 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Peoples Financial Services CORP. reduced its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 6.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 18,102 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,149 shares during the period. Peoples Financial Services CORP.’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,662,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Miracle Mile Advisors LLC now owns 15,928 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,465,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management increased its holdings in Southern by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Keudell Morrison Wealth Management now owns 10,032 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $922,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 23.0% in the 1st quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 616 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. PFW Advisors LLC now owns 6,114 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $562,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in Southern by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 8,565 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $788,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $94.54 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $104.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.30, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.41. Southern Company has a 12 month low of $80.46 and a 12 month high of $96.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $93.54 and its 200 day moving average is $91.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.70 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 earnings per share. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. Research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SO has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Southern from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Southern from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $102.00 to $100.00 in a report on Thursday, June 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $98.00 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.08.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,010.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This represents a 12.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% 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.