FY2024 EPS Estimates for Southern Reduced by Zacks Research

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research dropped their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for Southern in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, November 20th. Zacks Research analyst T. Saha now forecasts that the utilities provider will earn $3.97 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $3.99. The consensus estimate for Southern’s current full-year earnings is $4.03 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southern’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.46 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $1.03 EPS, Q2 2025 earnings at $1.01 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.23 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $0.87 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.15 EPS and Q2 2026 earnings at $1.09 EPS.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. Southern had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 17.87%. The firm had revenue of $7.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.14 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.42 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis.

SO has been the topic of several other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Southern from $83.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.47.

Southern Trading Up 0.9 %

SO stock opened at $88.41 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $96.87 billion, a PE ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.66. Southern has a 12 month low of $65.80 and a 12 month high of $94.45. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $89.70 and its 200 day moving average is $84.86.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SO. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 17,272.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 14,647,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,320,866,000 after acquiring an additional 14,562,689 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Southern by 8,741.6% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,502,813 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $135,524,000 after purchasing an additional 1,485,816 shares during the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp grew its position in shares of Southern by 72.4% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 3,077,959 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $277,570,000 after buying an additional 1,293,072 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,521,339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,203,386,000 after purchasing an additional 1,075,768 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Southern by 2,719.7% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 872,373 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $67,670,000 after buying an additional 841,435 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other news, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.64, for a total transaction of $2,689,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 145,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,005,688.32. The trade was a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total value of $587,830.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. This represents a 12.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

Southern Company Profile

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.