The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Sold by Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lowered its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 999 shares during the period. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,653,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 112,331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,271,000 after acquiring an additional 794 shares in the last quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA raised its position in shares of Southern by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA now owns 13,281 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $860,000 after acquiring an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $577,000 after acquiring an additional 741 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 23,783 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,539,000 after acquiring an additional 1,212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caprock Group LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 16,688 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,080,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of SO stock opened at $72.99 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $69.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.18. The Southern Company has a 1-year low of $61.56 and a 1-year high of $75.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $79.90 billion, a PE ratio of 20.11, a P/E/G ratio of 4.51 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Southern had a return on equity of 11.40% and a net margin of 15.79%. The firm had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. Southern’s quarterly revenue was down 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that The Southern Company will post 4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 6th. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.95%. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other Southern news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.92, for a total value of $344,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 126,528 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,720,309.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $60,286.94. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,502 shares in the company, valued at $1,508,984.12. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.92, for a total value of $344,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 126,528 shares in the company, valued at $8,720,309.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 10,899 shares of company stock valued at $739,587. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on SO shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 16th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target (up previously from $72.00) on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, April 1st. Mizuho lifted their price target on Southern from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Scotiabank cut their price target on Southern from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group lowered Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $78.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $74.00.

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.