Choreo LLC Has $6.09 Million Stock Holdings in Southern Company (The) $SO

Choreo LLC grew its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 29.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,305 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,818 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $6,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. West Family Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Southern by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 12,709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,204,000 after buying an additional 269 shares during the period. Advisor OS LLC boosted its stake in Southern by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 18,149 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,720,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Westpac Banking Corp grew its holdings in Southern by 735.9% during the third quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 23,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,194,000 after purchasing an additional 20,385 shares during the period. Interchange Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the third quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Southern by 3.8% in the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,191,273 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $207,667,000 after purchasing an additional 80,272 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Up 1.1%

Southern stock opened at $97.38 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $89.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $91.37. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $83.09 and a 1-year high of $100.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The company has a market cap of $107.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released 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). The company had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.41 billion. Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. Southern’s revenue was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial set a $103.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Southern in a report on Monday. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, February 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $97.64.

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.