OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 161,372 Southern Company (The) $SO

OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 161,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $15,445,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Ankerstar Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on SO. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Seaport Research Partners downgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Mizuho set a $106.00 target price on Southern in a report on Friday, July 31st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $100.09.

Southern Stock Up 0.0%

Southern stock opened at $92.83 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $106.79 billion, a PE ratio of 22.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.34. Southern Company has a twelve month low of $83.80 and a twelve month high of $100.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.69 and a 200-day moving average of $94.35.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.79 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 72.90%.

About Southern

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.