Gabelli Funds LLC Has $33.42 Million Stock Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Gabelli Funds LLC lessened its position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 430,850 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,000 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $33,421,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Southern by 62.0% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Southern in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its position in Southern by 3,628.6% during the first quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Southern news, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $931,320.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,771 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,301,597.31. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $535,509.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 85,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,620,831.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $931,320.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,771 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,597.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,845 shares of company stock valued at $2,266,455 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Southern Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $89.70 on Friday. The Southern Company has a 1 year low of $61.56 and a 1 year high of $90.34. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $86.20 and its 200-day moving average is $78.88. 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 has a market capitalization of $98.08 billion, a PE ratio of 23.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.52.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.10 billion. Southern had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.79 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that The Southern Company will post 4.01 EPS for the current year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 74.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Southern in a report on Friday. They set a “hold” rating and a $94.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Southern from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Mizuho downgraded Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.33.

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.