Southern (NYSE:SO) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $90.00 to $91.00. UBS Group currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Southern traded as high as $90.58 and last traded at $90.39, with a volume of 1103513 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $89.70.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on SO. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Southern from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Southern in a report on Friday. They issued a "hold" rating and a $94.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Southern from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $86.33.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other Southern news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the company'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 owns 44,467 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,981,575.18. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 44,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $535,509.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 85,309 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,620,831.49. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 27,845 shares of company stock worth $2,266,455. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vista Capital Partners Inc. increased its position in shares of Southern by 1.4% in the second quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 8,743 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $678,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Modera Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Southern by 1.4% during 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 in 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 valued at $1,080,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC grew its position in shares of Southern by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Elwood & Goetz Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 6,352 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $493,000 after acquiring an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Southern by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Moloney Securities Asset Management LLC now owns 6,595 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $512,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Price Performance

The company's 50 day moving average is $86.41 and its 200-day moving average is $79.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $98.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.52. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $6.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.10 billion. Southern had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The company'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 business posted $0.79 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 19th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.18%. Southern's payout ratio is presently 74.42%.

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.