CAPROCK Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO – Get Rating) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 3,189 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $228,000.
Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at about $25,000. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 192.0% during the 4th quarter. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC now owns 511 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the last quarter. My Personal CFO LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Karp Capital Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Fiduciary Alliance LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. 61.78% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Insider Activity
In other news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 14,546 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.95, for a total value of $1,032,038.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 120,786 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,569,766.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 14,546 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.95, for a total transaction of $1,032,038.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 120,786 shares in the company, valued at $8,569,766.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 1,282 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.60, for a total transaction of $85,381.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,512 shares in the company, valued at $1,832,299.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 16,680 shares of company stock valued at $1,174,768. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.
Southern Price Performance
Southern (NYSE:SO – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 16th. The utilities provider reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.02. Southern had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 11.73%. The firm had revenue of $7.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.83 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. Southern’s quarterly revenue was up 22.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 3.61 EPS for the current year.
Southern Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 21st were issued a $0.68 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 17th. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.91%. Southern’s payout ratio is 82.93%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
SO has been the subject of several research reports. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Southern from $73.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 12th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Southern from $79.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 2nd. Credit Suisse Group boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $60.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Southern from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Southern from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, December 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $71.64.
About Southern
The Southern Co is a holding company, which engages in the generation and sale of electricity. It operates through the following segments: Traditional Electric Operating Companies, Southern Power and Southern Company Gas. The Traditional Electric Operating Companies segment refers to vertically integrated utilities that own generation, transmission and distribution facilities, and supplies electric services in the states of Alabama, Georgia, Florida, and Mississippi.
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