The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Sold by Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co.

Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. lowered its stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) by 3.2% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 42,005 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,408 shares during the period. Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Southern were worth $3,788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vista Capital Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Southern by 1.4% during the second quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 8,743 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $678,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 1.4% in the second quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $702,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Red Door Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 0.9% in the second quarter. Red Door Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,926 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,080,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,352 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $493,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Southern by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC now owns 6,595 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $512,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on SO. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Southern in a report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $94.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on Southern from $66.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Mizuho lowered shares of Southern from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $90.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.27.

Southern Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of Southern stock opened at $90.70 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $87.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.12. The Southern Company has a 1 year low of $62.26 and a 1 year high of $91.86. 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 company has a market capitalization of $99.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.44, a PEG ratio of 3.23 and a beta of 0.52.

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

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th were issued a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 19th. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.42%.

Insider Activity at Southern

In other Southern news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total transaction of $587,830.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Southern news, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total transaction of $211,796.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,112,375. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.54, for a total value of $587,830.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,981,575.18. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.