Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) Stock Now Rated “Hold” by Wall Street Analysts

Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $100.08.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Southern from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Mizuho set a $106.00 target price on Southern in a report on Friday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group set a $99.00 price target on Southern in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Southern from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, July 29th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Bullseye Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the second quarter valued at $26,000. Cornerstone Financial Management LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Southern during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE SO opened at $85.38 on Thursday. Southern has a 12 month low of $81.69 and a 12 month high of $100.83. The company has a market capitalization of $98.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.48, a PEG ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.31. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $88.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $92.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.23 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Southern will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 72.90%.

Southern Company Profile

Southern Company (NYSE:SO) is a diversified energy holding company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Through its operating subsidiaries, the company generates, transmits, distributes and sells electricity, while also providing natural gas distribution and related energy services.

Southern’s regulated electric utilities include Alabama Power, Georgia Power and Mississippi Power, which serve residential, commercial and industrial customers across the southeastern United States. The company’s portfolio includes coal, natural gas, nuclear, hydroelectric and renewable generation assets.