Analysts Set The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Target Price at $90.14

Shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the fifteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $90.14.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on SO shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Southern from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In other news, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.64, for a total value of $2,689,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 145,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,005,688.32. The trade was a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $100,503.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,393 shares in the company, valued at $7,592,958.70. This trade represents a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 168.1% in the third quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. West Branch Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Southern by 34.7% in the 3rd quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Southern during the third quarter valued at $49,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Southern during the third quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Southern Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE:SO opened at $82.86 on Friday. Southern has a 12 month low of $65.80 and a 12 month high of $94.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $88.00 and its 200 day moving average is $85.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.79 billion, a PE ratio of 19.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.51.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its quarterly 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 earned $1.42 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Southern will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $0.72 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. Southern’s payout ratio is 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.