Southern (NYSE:SO) CEO Kimberly Greene Sells 25,000 Shares

Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) CEO Kimberly Greene sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total transaction of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at $10,015,205.34. This trade represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Southern Trading Up 0.5%

SO opened at $97.45 on Friday. Southern Company has a twelve month low of $83.09 and a twelve month high of $100.83. The company has a fifty day moving average of $94.09 and a 200-day moving average of $91.98. The stock has a market cap of $107.30 billion, a PE ratio of 24.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). The firm 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 quarterly revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.50 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 0.5% during the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 21,461 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,034,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Southern by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,485,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Sara Bay Financial raised its holdings in Southern by 2.7% during the third quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 4,133 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $392,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Southern by 2.1% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $489,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Southern from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 15th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Southern from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $102.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Southern from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.08.

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.