Southern (SO) to Release Earnings on Thursday

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) will be posting its quarterly earnings results before the market opens on Thursday, October 31st. Analysts expect Southern to post earnings of $1.32 per share for the quarter. Individual that are interested in registering for the company's earnings conference call can do so using this link.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $6.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.10 billion. Southern had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The company's revenue was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.79 EPS. On average, analysts expect Southern to post $4 EPS for the current fiscal year and $4 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Southern Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE SO traded down $0.70 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $93.45. The company had a trading volume of 1,723,445 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,416,131. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $89.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.20. The stock has a market cap of $102.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.42, a PEG ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.52. Southern has a 52-week low of $65.80 and a 52-week high of $94.45.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on SO shares. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Southern from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Southern from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Southern from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Southern from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $89.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of Southern 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 completion of 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed 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 firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 12,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,112,375. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.64, for a total value 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 $13,005,688.32. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,945 shares of company stock valued at $3,488,826. 0.18% of the stock is 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.