Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC Buys 1,115 Shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 23,779 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,115 shares during the quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,667,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,883 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the last quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 19,956 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,399,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Insight Inv LLC boosted its position in shares of Southern by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Insight Inv LLC now owns 10,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $738,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN boosted its position in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Patten & Patten Inc. TN now owns 20,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,454,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CNB Bank boosted its position in shares of Southern by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. CNB Bank now owns 778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of SO traded up $0.21 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $73.46. 1,573,656 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,650,460. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $61.56 and a 52 week high of $75.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The company’s 50 day moving average is $69.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.24. The company has a market capitalization of $80.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 0.49.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Southern had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 15.79%. The business had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This is an increase from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.13%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $60,286.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,502 shares in the company, valued at $1,508,984.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.92, for a total transaction of $344,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 126,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,720,309.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $60,286.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,508,984.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,899 shares of company stock valued at $739,587. 0.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on SO. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target (up previously from $72.00) on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Bank of America increased their price target on Southern from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $78.00 to $76.00 in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on Southern from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.36.

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.