Teacher Retirement System of Texas Sells 123,715 Shares of Southern Company (The) $SO

Teacher Retirement System of Texas cut its stake in Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) by 28.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 308,461 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 123,715 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Southern were worth $29,233,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Southern by 275.0% during the second quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 300 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. Advantage Trust Co grew its holdings in Southern by 1,428.6% during the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Southern during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. purchased a new position in Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Southern Price Performance

NYSE SO opened at $87.52 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $87.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $91.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Southern Company has a 12-month low of $82.05 and a 12-month high of $100.83.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by $0.09. Southern had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 15.42%.The firm had revenue of $7.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SO. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research note on Wednesday. Mizuho lowered their target price on Southern from $97.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays dropped their target price on Southern from $91.00 to $88.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut Southern from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $97.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.91.

Southern Company 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.