Southern Company (The) $SO Shares Purchased by Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC

Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 10,209 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 669 shares during the quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $937,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Ameriflex Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 275.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. Cheviot Value Management LLC purchased a new stake in Southern in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Advantage Trust Co increased its position in Southern by 1,428.6% during the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Southern during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Southern during the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of SO stock opened at $91.39 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $94.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.50. The company has a market capitalization of $100.63 billion, a PE ratio of 23.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.31 and a beta of 0.45. Southern Company has a twelve month low of $80.46 and a twelve month high of $100.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $7.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.04 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.10% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.39 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be issued a $0.74 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.50 target price (up from $99.50) on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Southern to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $99.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut Southern from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $112.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.56.

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.