ExodusPoint Capital Management LP Makes New Investment in Southern Company (The) $SO

ExodusPoint Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 576,900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $50,306,000. Southern accounts for 0.4% of ExodusPoint Capital Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Ankerstar Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Triumph Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 103,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,015,205.34. This represents a 19.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 30,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This represents a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Mizuho set a $105.00 target price on Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Seaport Research Partners lowered Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings raised Southern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.38.

Southern Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $94.27 on Wednesday. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $83.80 and a 12-month high of $100.83. The company has a market cap of $106.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $93.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.03.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. This is an increase from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 77.35%.

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.