Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. Cuts Stake in Southern Company (The) $SO

Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. lessened its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 2.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 186 shares during the quarter. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC.’s holdings in Southern were worth $595,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its position in Southern by 275.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Saudi Central Bank acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Performance

Southern stock opened at $98.23 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $108.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $93.62 and a 200-day moving average of $91.74. Southern Company has a 52 week low of $80.46 and a 52 week high of $98.36.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.08). Southern had a return on equity of 12.09% and a net margin of 15.10%.The firm had revenue of $6.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Southern has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.500-1.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 4.200-4.300 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th were paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Southern from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Evercore ISI began coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, October 6th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Southern from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $96.31.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other Southern news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 13,158 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.00, for a total value of $1,250,010.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,661 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,897,795. This trade represents a 12.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Southern Company Profile

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. The company also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy projects and sells electricity in the wholesale market; and distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, gas distribution operations, and gas pipeline investments operations.