Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Acquired by Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC

Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC grew its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 2.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 299,202 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,821 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $28,355,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Donaldson Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 2,785.8% during the 3rd quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 563,027 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,358,000 after acquiring an additional 543,517 shares during the period. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the third quarter worth $1,813,000. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the third quarter worth $4,852,000. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC lifted its position in Southern by 23.6% during the second quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 7,145 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $656,000 after purchasing an additional 1,366 shares during the period. Finally, Shelton Capital Management boosted its holdings in Southern by 700.6% in the second quarter. Shelton Capital Management now owns 161,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,841,000 after purchasing an additional 141,430 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $97.67 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.65. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $90.40 and a 200 day moving average of $91.42. The firm has a market cap of $107.54 billion, a PE ratio of 24.85, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.44. Southern Company has a one year low of $83.09 and a one year high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced 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). Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The company had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. KeyCorp raised shares of Southern from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 target price on shares of Southern and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.64.

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.