Southern (NYSE:SO) Stock Breaks Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO – Get Free Report) passed below its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $92.29 and traded as low as $91.28. Southern shares last traded at $91.4840, with a volume of 5,228,646 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Southern from $79.00 to $74.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Barclays cut their price target on Southern from $101.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 16th. Citigroup reduced their price target on Southern from $114.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 25th. DA Davidson set a $98.00 price objective on Southern in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Southern from $96.00 to $95.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.24.

Get Our Latest Analysis on SO

Southern Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $87.78 and its 200 day moving average is $92.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 0.79 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company has a market cap of $107.79 billion, a PE ratio of 20.22, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.31.

Southern (NYSE:SO – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.12. Southern had a net margin of 15.43% and a return on equity of 12.93%. The business had revenue of $6.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.23 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.79 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 7th. Investors of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.90%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SO. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Southern by 39.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Fiduciary Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 130,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,827,000 after purchasing an additional 37,247 shares during the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp raised its position in Southern by 29.2% in the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 50,628 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,887,000 after purchasing an additional 11,448 shares during the period. Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in Southern by 19.1% during the first quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 92,289 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,908,000 after purchasing an additional 14,798 shares in the last quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Southern during the second quarter worth $1,908,000. Finally, BIP Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern during the second quarter worth $3,059,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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

Southern’s electric utility operations include Alabama Power, Georgia Power and Mississippi Power, which serve customers across Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. The company’s generation portfolio includes nuclear, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and renewable energy resources.

Further Reading

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