Mackenzie Financial Corp Sells 23,129 Shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Mackenzie Financial Corp lessened its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 312,986 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 23,129 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Southern were worth $24,278,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southern in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Southern by 62.0% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Southern by 3,628.6% during the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Price Performance

SO stock opened at $90.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $98.52 billion, a PE ratio of 23.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $87.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.60. The Southern Company has a 1 year low of $61.56 and a 1 year high of $90.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.19. Southern had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The business had revenue of $6.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that The Southern Company will post 4.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.42%.

Insider Activity

In other Southern news, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $1,301,597.31. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 85,309 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,620,831.49. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,301,597.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 27,845 shares of company stock valued at $2,266,455. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on SO shares. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Mizuho downgraded Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on Southern from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.60.

Southern 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.