Vest Financial LLC Acquires 8,995 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Vest Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 19.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 55,271 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,995 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $4,820,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Oakworth Capital Inc. grew its holdings in Southern by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 50,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,414,000 after purchasing an additional 1,204 shares during the period. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $96,000. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in Southern by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 158,292 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,803,000 after purchasing an additional 10,531 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 23,741 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,070,000 after purchasing an additional 192 shares during the period. Finally, Anchyra Partners LLC bought a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $3,029,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $96.00 price objective on shares of Southern and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Southern from an “underweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.08.

Southern Stock Down 0.9%

NYSE SO opened at $93.59 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 1-year low of $83.09 and a 1-year high of $100.83. The company has a 50 day moving average of $95.86 and a 200-day moving average of $92.09. The company has a market cap of $105.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.81, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.41.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by ($0.02). Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.26 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 18th. Southern’s payout ratio is 75.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

About Southern

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.