Southern Company (The) $SO Position Boosted by PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab

PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab boosted its holdings in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 192,080 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,800 shares during the quarter. PensionDanmark Pensionsforsikringsaktieselskab’s holdings in Southern were worth $18,384,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Ankerstar Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of Southern stock opened at $92.83 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $94.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.17. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $83.80 and a 52 week high of $100.83. The stock has a market cap of $106.79 billion, a PE ratio of 22.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The company had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. Southern’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.90%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. KeyCorp cut shares of Southern from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $79.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.26.

Southern 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.