BIP Wealth LLC Boosts Stake in Southern Company (The) $SO

BIP Wealth LLC grew its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 75.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,337 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,327 shares during the period. BIP Wealth LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,833,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,813,000. Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in Southern by 24.7% in the second quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 34,527 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,171,000 after buying an additional 6,843 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC raised its stake in Southern by 23.6% in the second quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 7,145 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $656,000 after buying an additional 1,366 shares in the last quarter. Shelton Capital Management lifted its holdings in Southern by 700.6% during the 2nd 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. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its holdings in Southern by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 822,403 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $75,521,000 after buying an additional 42,531 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho lowered their price target on Southern from $97.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 11th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Southern from $107.00 to $99.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $99.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $102.50 price objective (up previously from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, October 17th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.56.

Southern Price Performance

SO stock opened at $88.94 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $87.74 and a 200-day moving average of $91.81. The company has a market cap of $97.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.02, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $82.05 and a 12-month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.09. Southern had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The firm had revenue of $7.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.