The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Shares Bought by Golden State Equity Partners

Golden State Equity Partners grew its stake in shares of The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 192.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,539 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 7,588 shares during the period. Golden State Equity Partners' holdings in Southern were worth $950,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SO. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 168.1% during the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 311 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Southern by 34.7% in the 3rd quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Southern in the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Southern during the third quarter valued at about $49,000. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on SO shares. Guggenheim downgraded Southern from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of 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, Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Southern presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $89.79.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $100,503.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,592,958.70. This trade represents a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Southern Stock Performance

SO traded up $0.64 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $83.84. 4,161,495 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,223,070. 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 stock has a market cap of $91.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.50, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.53. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $65.80 and a 52 week high of $94.45. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $83.70 and a 200 day moving average of $86.67.

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Southern's payout ratio is 66.98%.

Southern 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.