Seaport Res Ptn Increases Earnings Estimates for Southern

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) – Research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn lifted their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for shares of Southern in a report issued on Monday, January 6th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst A. Storozynski now forecasts that the utilities provider will earn $4.06 per share for the year, up from their previous estimate of $4.03. The consensus estimate for Southern’s current full-year earnings is $4.03 per share. Seaport Res Ptn also issued estimates for Southern’s FY2025 earnings at $4.36 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $4.64 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $4.96 EPS.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. Southern had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 17.87%. The company had revenue of $7.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.14 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.42 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Guggenheim upped their target price on Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Southern from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a research note on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $94.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.14.

Southern Stock Up 0.0 %

NYSE:SO opened at $80.99 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $85.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.05. The company has a market cap of $88.74 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.52. Southern has a twelve month low of $65.80 and a twelve month high of $94.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Strathmore Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at $279,000. Bangor Savings Bank grew its stake in Southern by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 21,522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,772,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Advance Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Southern by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Advance Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $206,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the period. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. purchased a new stake in Southern in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Southern by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 58,881 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,842,000 after acquiring an additional 1,816 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 88,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,592,958.70. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Southern’s payout ratio is currently 66.98%.

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.