Xponance Inc. Lowers Position in Southern Company (The) $SO

Xponance Inc. cut its stake in shares of Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 163,026 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,791 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Southern were worth $15,450,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SO. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 21,461 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,034,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,443,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Southern by 0.7% during the third quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,485,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Sara Bay Financial boosted its position in Southern by 2.7% in the third quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 4,133 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $392,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Southern by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,155 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $489,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of SO stock opened at $97.38 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.78, a PEG ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.45. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $89.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $91.37. Southern Company has a 1 year low of $83.09 and a 1 year high of $100.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). Southern had a net margin of 14.69% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The company had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. Southern’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Southern Company will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be issued a $0.74 dividend. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Southern in a report on Monday. KeyCorp decreased their price target on shares of Southern from $87.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Southern from $91.00 to $88.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.64.

Southern 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.