Stephens Consulting LLC Raises Stock Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its position in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 21.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,925 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 513 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $241,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southern by 168.1% during the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 84.9% in the fourth quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 429 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 244.4% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 434 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 308 shares during the period. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 34.7% during the third quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Southern stock opened at $84.03 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $86.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.91. The Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $65.80 and a fifty-two week high of $94.45. The company has a market cap of $92.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $100,503.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 88,393 shares in the company, valued at $7,592,958.70. This trade represents a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on SO shares. Guggenheim lowered Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays raised their price objective on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Mizuho upped their target price on Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.79.

About Southern

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.