Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. Has $26.03 Million Position in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its stake in The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) by 94.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 288,679 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 140,151 shares during the quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc.'s holdings in Southern were worth $26,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 2.8% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 168,898 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,101,000 after acquiring an additional 4,650 shares during the period. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Southern by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 15,481 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,201,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its stake in Southern by 7.0% in the 2nd quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 28,027 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,174,000 after purchasing an additional 1,822 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Investments LLC purchased a new position in Southern in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,475,000. Finally, CX Institutional increased its stake in Southern by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 6,355 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $493,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO traded down $0.48 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $85.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,434,525 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,421,085. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average price of $89.59 and a 200 day moving average price of $85.27. The firm has a market cap of $93.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.20 and a beta of 0.51. The Southern Company has a 52 week low of $65.80 and a 52 week high of $94.45.

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

Southern Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Southern's dividend payout ratio is presently 66.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Southern from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Mizuho lowered Southern from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $90.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Southern in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They set 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 issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $89.47.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 value of $587,830.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,467 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,981,575.18. The trade was a 12.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the business'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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 145,088 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,005,688.32. This represents a 17.13 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.