Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Has $1.90 Million Stake in Southern Company (The) $SO

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. trimmed its position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 2.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,632 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 528 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,895,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the first quarter worth $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Southern during the first quarter worth $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Saudi Central Bank acquired a new position in shares of Southern in the first quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in shares of Southern in the first quarter valued at $39,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 93,661 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,897,795. This represents a 12.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Southern Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of Southern stock opened at $94.56 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $93.45 and a 200-day moving average of $91.47. The stock has a market cap of $104.02 billion, a PE ratio of 24.31, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.43. Southern Company has a 52-week low of $80.46 and a 52-week high of $96.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74.

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

Southern Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $98.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Southern from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Southern has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.08.

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.