Advocate Group LLC Boosts Holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Advocate Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 0.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 94,398 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 264 shares during the period. Southern comprises 1.5% of Advocate Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Advocate Group LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $8,513,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital International Investors lifted its position in Southern by 45.9% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 23,994,733 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,721,382,000 after purchasing an additional 7,550,570 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter worth approximately $128,413,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Southern by 36.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,529,052 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $247,457,000 after acquiring an additional 934,447 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Southern by 2,719.7% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 872,373 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $67,670,000 after purchasing an additional 841,435 shares during the period. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. increased its stake in shares of Southern by 7,657.0% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 571,148 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $44,304,000 after purchasing an additional 563,785 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE SO traded up $0.24 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $89.17. 336,502 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,456,134. The stock has a market capitalization of $97.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $88.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.74. The Southern Company has a 12 month low of $64.53 and a 12 month high of $91.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.19. Southern had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The business had revenue of $6.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 74.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total value of $587,830.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Southern news, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total value of $211,796.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,112,375. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total value of $587,830.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 38,945 shares of company stock valued at $3,488,826. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Southern from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut shares of Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $88.27.

Southern Profile

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.