Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 18,619 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 5.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 389,010 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,619 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Southern were worth $35,723,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Ameriflex Group Inc. raised its holdings in Southern by 275.0% in the second 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 bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Advantage Trust Co grew its position in shares of Southern by 1,428.6% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Price Performance

NYSE SO opened at $90.76 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $99.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.33, a PEG ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $94.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $92.50. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $80.46 and a 1 year high of $100.83.

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

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.27%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Southern from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Southern from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI started coverage on Southern in a research report on Monday, October 6th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $103.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Southern in a research note on Monday, October 27th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on Southern in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.56.

About Southern

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.