Mizuho Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Southern (NYSE:SO) Stock

Southern (NYSE:SO) had its target price lifted by Mizuho from $83.00 to $85.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 2.17% from the company’s current price.

SO has been the topic of several other reports. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays increased their price target on Southern from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim cut shares of Southern from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Southern has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $89.79.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SO opened at $83.19 on Monday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $83.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $86.66. The firm has a market cap of $91.15 billion, a PE ratio of 19.35, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53. 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 has a 1-year low of $65.80 and a 1-year high of $94.45.

Insider Activity at Southern

In other news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $100,503.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,393 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,592,958.70. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Southern during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in Southern during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 168.1% in the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 84.9% in the 4th quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 429 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valley National Advisers Inc. increased its position in shares of Southern by 244.4% during the fourth quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 434 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 308 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Southern

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.