Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC Takes Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Roberts Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 8,632 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $753,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 17.5% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 34,003 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,127,000 after purchasing an additional 5,067 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its position in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 59,217 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,438,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,933,000. CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its position in Southern by 11.5% in the second quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 25,025 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,298,000 after buying an additional 2,583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Insigneo Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Southern by 12.7% in the second quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Southern

In other news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This trade represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE:SO opened at $94.51 on Thursday. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $83.09 and a 12-month high of $100.83. The firm has a market cap of $104.07 billion, a PE ratio of 24.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $93.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.78.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). Southern had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 14.69%.The company had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.50 EPS. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.74 per share. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Southern from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Mizuho set a $104.00 target price on Southern and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.08.

Southern 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.