Concord Asset Management LLC VA Cuts Stock Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Concord Asset Management LLC VA cut its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 34,847 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 9,657 shares during the quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA’s holdings in Southern were worth $3,302,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southern by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 105,904,243 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,725,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,694,066 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 0.9% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 26,006,919 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,377,494,000 after purchasing an additional 241,572 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Southern during the second quarter valued at $1,179,715,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Southern by 1.3% in the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,768,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $621,567,000 after buying an additional 87,891 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Southern by 9,099.6% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,421,331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $406,011,000 after buying an additional 4,373,271 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on SO. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Southern from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $98.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.50 price target (up previously from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on shares of Southern from $87.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.91.

Southern Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $90.14 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $99.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.31, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $87.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.50. Southern Company has a one year low of $83.09 and a one year high of $100.83.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.27%.

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.