Southern (NYSE:SO) Price Target Cut to $97.00 by Analysts at BMO Capital Markets

Southern (NYSE:SO - Free Report) had its target price lowered by BMO Capital Markets from $99.00 to $97.00 in a research report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the utilities provider's stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised 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. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Southern in a research note on Friday, September 20th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Southern from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $89.27.

Southern Trading Down 2.7 %

NYSE SO traded down $2.49 during trading on Friday, hitting $88.54. 6,814,749 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,461,907. The firm has a market cap of $96.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.25, a PEG ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $89.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $83.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.66. Southern has a 12-month low of $65.80 and a 12-month high of $94.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.46 billion during 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 firm's revenue was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.79 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Southern will post 4.02 EPS for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.57%.

Insider Transactions at Southern

In other Southern news, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 12,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,112,375. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Southern news, EVP Sterling A. Jr. Spainhour sold 2,380 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.99, for a total transaction of $211,796.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 12,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,112,375. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Bryan D. Anderson sold 6,565 shares of the business'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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,981,575.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,945 shares of company stock worth $3,488,826 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Southern

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its position in Southern by 34.7% in the third quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern in the second quarter valued at $39,000. Cedar Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southern by 63.2% in the 1st quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 545 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Southern by 31.8% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 585 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. 64.10% of the stock is currently 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.