Argyle Capital Management Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Argyle Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 20.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,471 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,000 shares during the quarter. Argyle Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $1,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rockline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Southern during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,945,000. Zullo Investment Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Southern by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Zullo Investment Group Inc. now owns 3,437 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $241,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Southern by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 14,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,045,000 after acquiring an additional 819 shares in the last quarter. Apella Capital LLC bought a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter valued at about $301,000. Finally, Alpine Woods Capital Investors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $3,795,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on SO shares. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on Southern from $80.00 to $77.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $76.00 price target (up previously from $72.00) on shares of Southern in a report on Monday, April 1st. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Southern from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Southern from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.36.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,508,984.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.94, for a total transaction of $334,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 129,552 shares in the company, valued at $8,672,210.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 899 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total value of $60,286.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,502 shares in the company, valued at $1,508,984.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,899 shares of company stock worth $739,587. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Southern Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of SO stock traded down $1.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $73.21. 5,478,762 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,829,927. The stock has a market cap of $80.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.17, a P/E/G ratio of 4.59 and a beta of 0.49. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $69.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.39. The Southern Company has a 52-week low of $61.56 and a 52-week high of $75.80. 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 issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Southern had a net margin of 15.79% and a return on equity of 11.40%. The business had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that The Southern Company will post 3.99 EPS for the current year.

Southern Increases Dividend

The business 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 $0.72 dividend. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. Southern’s payout ratio is 79.34%.

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.