Silverlake Wealth Management LLC Takes $1.04 Million Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Silverlake Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 10,839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,037,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Southern by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 108,057,413 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,422,606,000 after purchasing an additional 1,643,090 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 41,142,076 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,587,589,000 after purchasing an additional 7,593,224 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Southern by 18.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 34,459,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,004,866,000 after purchasing an additional 5,436,212 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,259,125 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,381,344,000 after purchasing an additional 384,860 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Southern during the 4th quarter valued at $1,111,450,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 target price on shares of Southern in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Seaport Research Partners lowered shares of Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Mizuho set a $106.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.09.

Southern Price Performance

SO opened at $92.83 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $94.69 and a 200 day moving average of $94.31. 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 market cap of $106.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.26, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The business had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.90%.

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.