Daiichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. Invests $16.08 Million in Southern Company (The) $SO

Daiichi Life Insurance Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 167,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $16,078,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SO. Uptick Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Southern by 1.5% in the first quarter. Uptick Partners LLC now owns 7,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $734,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Seelaus Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Southern by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 4,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $475,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. KCM Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Southern by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 34,328 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,313,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Stokes Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Stokes Family Office LLC now owns 15,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leonteq Securities AG increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 2,657 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Trading Down 2.6%

NYSE:SO opened at $89.09 on Friday. Southern Company has a 52-week low of $83.80 and a 52-week high of $100.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.40. The company has a market capitalization of $102.49 billion, a PE ratio of 21.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on SO shares. Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Southern from $92.00 to $89.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Southern from a “sector weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $79.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on Southern from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.09.

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.