ClearBridge Investments Ltd Trims Stock Holdings in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

ClearBridge Investments Ltd lessened its stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 27.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,738,839 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 660,362 shares during the period. Southern comprises about 3.9% of ClearBridge Investments Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest position. ClearBridge Investments Ltd owned about 0.16% of Southern worth $134,882,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Southern by 45.9% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 23,994,733 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,721,382,000 after acquiring an additional 7,550,570 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Southern in the first quarter worth about $128,413,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Southern by 36.0% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,529,052 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $247,457,000 after purchasing an additional 934,447 shares during the period. 1832 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 2,719.7% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 872,373 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $67,670,000 after buying an additional 841,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its stake in Southern by 7,657.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 571,148 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $44,304,000 after buying an additional 563,785 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Southern news, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $931,320.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,771 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,597.31. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of Southern stock in a transaction on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $535,509.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 85,309 shares in the company, valued at $6,620,831.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $931,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,301,597.31. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 27,845 shares of company stock valued at $2,266,455. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Southern from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Friday. They set a "hold" rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Southern from $77.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Southern from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Southern from $83.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $86.33.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of SO stock traded up $0.82 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $90.52. 3,825,059 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,470,457. The company has a market capitalization of $98.98 billion, a PE ratio of 23.39, a PEG 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. The Southern Company has a 12-month low of $61.56 and a 12-month high of $90.59. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $86.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.10.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.19. Southern had a net margin of 17.67% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The business had revenue of $6.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.79 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

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