Southern (NYSE:SO – Get Rating) had its price target reduced by research analysts at UBS Group to $80.00 in a report released on Monday, Stock Target Advisor reports. UBS Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 22.17% from the company’s current price.
Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Argus boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Southern from $53.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 22nd. Bank Of America (Bofa) downgraded shares of Southern to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 24th. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Southern from $80.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Monday, October 24th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Southern from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.42.
Southern Trading Down 0.1 %
SO traded down $0.09 during trading on Monday, reaching $65.48. 151,884 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,010,616. Southern has a one year low of $60.71 and a one year high of $80.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.55 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $68.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.16.
Insider Transactions at Southern
In related news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 3,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.80, for a total transaction of $200,690.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 39,916 shares in the company, valued at $2,626,472.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Stephen E. Kuczynski sold 14,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.52, for a total value of $935,540.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 115,284 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,438,123.68. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 3,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.80, for a total transaction of $200,690.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 39,916 shares in the company, valued at $2,626,472.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 32,050 shares of company stock worth $2,288,545 in the last quarter. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. D L Carlson Investment Group Inc. lifted its position in Southern by 0.8% during the third quarter. D L Carlson Investment Group Inc. now owns 47,123 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,204,000 after buying an additional 384 shares during the period. National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of Southern by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,675,924 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,276,000 after purchasing an additional 70,097 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its stake in shares of Southern by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 82,033 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,578,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in Southern by 9.8% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 164,331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,175,000 after acquiring an additional 14,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Southern by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 228,142 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,513,000 after acquiring an additional 6,393 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 62.20% of the company’s stock.
Southern Company Profile
The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. It operates through Gas Distribution Operations, Gas Pipeline Investments, Wholesale Gas Services, and Gas Marketing Services segments. 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, wholesale gas services, and gas pipeline investments operations.