Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY Trims Stock Holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY decreased its holdings in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,555 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Burns J W & Co. Inc. NY’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,514,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 48.7% during the first quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 3,196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $222,000 after buying an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC now owns 14,463 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares during the period. Householder Group Estate & Retirement Specialist LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter worth approximately $76,000. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Southern by 1,073.3% in the 1st quarter. Nelson Van Denburg & Campbell Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 880 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the period. Finally, CI Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Southern by 110.4% during the 4th quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 2,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $212,000 after purchasing an additional 1,560 shares in the last quarter. 62.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:SO opened at $70.95 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $77.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.07, a P/E/G ratio of 4.93 and a beta of 0.52. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $58.85 and a 52 week high of $78.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a fifty day moving average of $69.42 and a 200 day moving average of $70.10.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $5.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.47 billion. Southern had a net margin of 11.17% and a return on equity of 9.86%. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.07 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 3.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 21st were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 18th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.95%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 98.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on SO. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Southern in a research note on Saturday, August 19th. They set a “sell” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Southern from a “buy” rating to a “conviction-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $74.00 in a research note on Friday, August 4th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, August 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $72.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Barclays started coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $68.00 target price for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $73.13.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,490 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.05, for a total value of $99,904.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 72,756 shares in the company, valued at $4,878,289.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Southern news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.05, for a total value of $99,904.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 72,756 shares in the company, valued at $4,878,289.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.83, for a total value of $339,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 121,284 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,226,693.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,490 shares of company stock worth $2,934,355 over the last quarter. 0.37% 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. It operates through three segments: Gas Distribution Operations, Gas Pipeline Investments, and Gas Marketing Services. 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.