IFG Advisory LLC Has $7.25 Million Holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

IFG Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 4.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 93,492 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,995 shares during the period. IFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Southern were worth $7,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 11,202 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $785,000 after acquiring an additional 462 shares during the period. Certuity LLC bought a new position in Southern during the fourth quarter worth $363,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 12,818 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $899,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. MONECO Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $587,000. Finally, Savant Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 65,937 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,624,000 after buying an additional 2,691 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO opened at $86.40 on Friday. The Southern Company has a fifty-two week low of $61.56 and a fifty-two week high of $89.68. The stock has a market cap of $94.47 billion, a PE ratio of 22.33, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $82.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.52.

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

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 19th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.42%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total value of $211,796.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,500 shares in the company, valued at $1,112,375. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Southern news, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total value of $211,796.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,500 shares in the company, valued at $1,112,375. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $931,320.00. Following the transaction, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,280 shares of company stock worth $1,678,625. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on SO shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Wolfe Research downgraded Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Southern from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Southern from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.71.

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.