Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Boosts Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 681,942 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,831 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $59,690,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Donaldson Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Southern by 2,785.8% in the third quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 563,027 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,358,000 after purchasing an additional 543,517 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,813,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,852,000. Finally, Shelton Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Southern by 700.6% in the second quarter. Shelton Capital Management now owns 161,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,841,000 after buying an additional 141,430 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total transaction of $643,891.95. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at $2,973,740. The trade was a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO stock opened at $93.49 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $92.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.73. Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $83.09 and a fifty-two week high of $100.83. The firm has a market cap of $102.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.79, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.01). Southern had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 14.69%.The company had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Southern’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on SO. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, December 6th. Evercore upgraded Southern from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $111.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Mizuho set a $104.00 price target on shares of Southern and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.08.

Southern Profile

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an Atlanta-based energy holding company that provides electric and gas utility services and owns power generation assets across the United States. Founded in 1945, the company operates a portfolio of regulated electric utilities and affiliated businesses that generate, transmit and distribute electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Southern’s principal regulated electric subsidiaries include Georgia Power, Alabama Power and Mississippi Power, which serve large portions of the southeastern United States.