Shepherd Financial Partners LLC Takes Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Shepherd Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 8,995 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $861,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. one8zero8 LLC bought a new stake in Southern during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $765,000. Kentucky Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co bought a new position in shares of Southern in the second quarter worth approximately $1,531,000. West Family Investments Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southern in the second quarter worth approximately $1,006,000. NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the second quarter worth $1,329,000. Finally, Patrick Mauro Investment Advisor INC. bought a new stake in shares of Southern during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,077,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SO. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Barclays decreased their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Mizuho set a $106.00 price objective on Southern in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $104.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Truist Financial cut their target price on Southern from $100.00 to $97.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.09.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of Southern stock opened at $92.22 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $94.66 and a 200 day moving average of $94.42. Southern Company has a 12 month low of $83.80 and a 12 month high of $100.83. The firm has a market cap of $106.09 billion, a PE ratio of 22.12, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a return on equity of 12.93% and a net margin of 15.43%.The business had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Southern Company will post 4.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.90%.

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.