Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Bought by Western Wealth Management LLC

Western Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 52.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,582 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,069 shares during the period. Western Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $2,276,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $211,000. Orographic Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Southern during the first quarter worth approximately $842,000. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 14.9% during the 1st quarter. Paragon Private Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,583 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $635,000 after buying an additional 853 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Southern by 4.9% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 8,380,592 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $808,895,000 after purchasing an additional 392,210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in shares of Southern by 1,790.4% in the first quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 100,794 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,729,000 after acquiring an additional 95,462 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE:SO opened at $94.79 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $83.80 and a 12-month high of $100.83. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $106.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.23 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The firm’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.90%.

Southern News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter earnings beat expectations: Southern reported adjusted EPS of $1.13, above the $1.01 analyst consensus and up from $0.91 a year earlier. The company’s reported earnings were $1.2 billion, or $1.03 per share, compared with $0.9 billion, or $0.80 per share, in the prior-year quarter. Southern Co. Beats Q2 Earnings Estimates Southern Company Reports Second-Quarter 2026 Earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Capacity expansion is positioning the utility for load growth: Georgia Power is developing nearly 1,500 megawatts of new natural-gas generation and 500 megawatts of battery storage at Plant Bowen. The projects could support reliability and future demand from industrial customers and data centers, although they also require substantial capital investment. Georgia Power and Officials Celebrate Plant Bowen Investments
• Positive Sentiment: Energy-storage and AI demand provide longer-term catalysts: Georgia Power completed the Moody Battery Energy Storage System, expanding Southern’s regulated storage platform. Analysts also point to large-load contracts and a reported 25-year OpenAI power agreement as potential drivers of future utility demand. Southern Completes Moody Battery Project Southern Company AI Data Center Opportunity
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue growth remained weak: Quarterly revenue was $6.98 billion, below the $7.23 billion consensus and up only 0.1% year over year, tempering the significance of the EPS beat. Southern Q2 Key Metrics Versus Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term guidance was slightly cautious: Third-quarter EPS guidance of $1.65 was below the $1.67 consensus, while the $4.50–$4.60 full-year 2026 range brackets but centers below the $4.57 estimate. The 2028 range of $5.25–$5.45, however, is at least in line with current expectations.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on SO shares. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday. KeyCorp cut shares of Southern from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $79.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.26.

About Southern

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.