AA Financial Advisors LLC Takes $226,000 Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

AA Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 2,501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $226,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SO. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $3,096,000. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Southern by 3,628.6% during the 1st quarter. Financial Synergies Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares during the period. Strategic Planning Group LLC boosted its position in Southern by 20.9% during the 1st quarter. Strategic Planning Group LLC now owns 17,517 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,257,000 after purchasing an additional 3,032 shares during the period. Finally, Austin Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in Southern by 24.5% during the 1st quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 3,991 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $283,000 after purchasing an additional 786 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Southern Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of Southern stock opened at $93.24 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $88.81 and its 200-day moving average is $81.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $101.95 billion, a PE ratio of 24.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The Southern Company has a 12-month low of $64.53 and a 12-month high of $93.35.

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

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Southern’s payout ratio is 74.42%.

Insider Activity at Southern

In related news, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 145,088 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,005,688.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total transaction of $587,830.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.64, for a total value of $2,689,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 145,088 shares in the company, valued at $13,005,688.32. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 38,945 shares of company stock valued at $3,488,826. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SO shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Southern from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Barclays boosted their price target on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Southern from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.07.

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.