The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Sold by Good Life Advisors LLC

Good Life Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,872 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 787 shares during the period. Good Life Advisors LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,636,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Southern by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 3,246 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 6,830 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $616,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,201 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $198,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $256,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,011 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Trading Up 0.3 %

SO stock opened at $85.82 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $86.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $65.99 and a 52 week high of $94.45. The company has a market cap of $94.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.53.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho boosted their price target on Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Southern news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $100,503.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,592,958.70. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO James Jeffrey Peoples sold 14,540 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.00, for a total transaction of $1,250,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,138,296. The trade was a 52.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.