ABN AMRO Bank N.V. Invests $1.97 Million in Southern Company (The) $SO

ABN AMRO Bank N.V. purchased a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 20,965 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,972,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SO. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Advantage Trust Co boosted its stake in Southern by 1,428.6% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 120.1% during the third quarter. Chilton Capital Management LLC now owns 361 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $91.06 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $87.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $100.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.54, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.45. Southern Company has a one year low of $82.90 and a one year high of $100.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.50 price objective (up from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Southern from $104.00 to $93.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $97.00 to $84.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $98.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their price objective on Southern from $87.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $94.91.

Southern Company 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.