Bailard Inc. Has $4.05 Million Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Bailard Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 44,096 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 545 shares during the quarter. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $4,049,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Prevail Innovative Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $221,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position in shares of Southern by 5.2% in the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 2,634 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $242,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern by 18.7% during the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 158,505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,575,000 after purchasing an additional 24,962 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in Southern by 12.1% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 11,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,051,000 after purchasing an additional 1,231 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $458,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of Southern stock opened at $91.97 on Thursday. 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 company has a market cap of $101.27 billion, a PE ratio of 23.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.15 and a 200-day moving average of $92.51. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $80.46 and a 1-year high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.09. Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The business had revenue of $7.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $99.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.56.

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.