TD Private Client Wealth LLC Trims Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

TD Private Client Wealth LLC cut its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 31.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 26,866 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 12,605 shares during the quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC's holdings in Southern were worth $2,423,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in SO. Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its stake in Southern by 17,272.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 14,647,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,320,866,000 after purchasing an additional 14,562,689 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Southern by 8,741.6% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,502,813 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $135,524,000 after purchasing an additional 1,485,816 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Southern by 4.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,521,339 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,203,386,000 after buying an additional 1,075,768 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Southern by 2,719.7% in 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 purchasing an additional 841,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its stake in shares of Southern by 7,657.0% during the second 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 during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE:SO traded up $0.12 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $83.37. 3,053,891 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,416,819. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $88.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The Southern Company has a one year low of $65.80 and a one year high of $94.45. The firm has a market cap of $91.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.51.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $7.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.14 billion. Southern had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.78%. The company's revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that The Southern Company will post 4.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were given a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. Southern's dividend payout ratio is 66.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.64, for a total value of $2,689,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 145,088 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,005,688.32. This trade represents a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total value of $100,503.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,393 shares in the company, valued at $7,592,958.70. The trade was a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on SO shares. Scotiabank increased their price objective on Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price objective on Southern from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $90.14.

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.