Norges Bank Invests $1.11 Billion in Southern Company (The) $SO

Norges Bank acquired a new position in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 12,745,981 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,111,450,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the third quarter valued at $37,000. Donaldson Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Southern by 2,785.8% during the third quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 563,027 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,358,000 after purchasing an additional 543,517 shares in the last quarter. Spirepoint Private Client LLC raised its stake in shares of Southern by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Spirepoint Private Client LLC now owns 97,631 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,513,000 after purchasing an additional 11,460 shares in the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of Southern by 1.8% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,753,676 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $260,966,000 after purchasing an additional 47,451 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S raised its position in Southern by 64.1% in the third quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 71,506 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,777,000 after acquiring an additional 27,920 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of Southern stock opened at $92.06 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $103.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.43, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $94.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.84. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $83.80 and a 12-month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11. Southern had a return on equity of 12.64% and a net margin of 14.46%.The firm had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. This is a boost from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on SO shares. Mizuho set a $105.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $87.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Barclays upped their target price on Southern from $88.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Southern from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $104.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $99.38.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This represents a 17.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,015,205.34. The trade was a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Southern Company Profile

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.