Analyzing the Price-to-Earnings Ratio of The Southern Company (SO)

The price-to-earnings ratio for The Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is above average at 20.83x. The 36-month beta value for SO is also noteworthy at 0.49. There are mixed opinions on the stock, with 6 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 0 rating it as “overweight,” 7 rating it as “hold,” and 3 rating it as “sell.”

The average price estimated by analysts for SO is $70.64, which is $3.26 above than the current price. The public float for SO is 1.09B, and at present, short sellers hold a 0.94% of that float. The average trading volume of SO on March 17, 2023 was 4.29M shares.

SO) stock’s latest price update

The Southern Company (NYSE: SO)’s stock price has increased by 0.69 compared to its previous closing price of 67.65. Despite this, the company has seen a gain of 5.53% in its stock price over the last five trading days. The Wall Street Journal reported on 04/30/22 that Tariff Probe Casts Shadow on U.S. Solar Build-Out

SO’s Market Performance

SO’s stock has risen by 5.53% in the past week, with a monthly rise of 2.21% and a quarterly drop of -4.34%. The volatility ratio for the week is 2.69% while the volatility levels for the last 30 days are 2.12% for The Southern Company The simple moving average for the last 20 days is 4.85% for SO stock, with a simple moving average of -3.08% for the last 200 days.

Analysts’ Opinion of SO

Wolfe Research, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see SO reach a price target of $76. The rating they have provided for SO stocks is “Outperform” according to the report published on December 12th, 2022.

BofA Securities gave a rating of “Underperform” to SO, setting the target price at $59 in the report published on October 24th of the previous year.

SO Trading at 1.47% from the 50-Day Moving Average

After a stumble in the market that brought SO to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -15.45% of loss for the given period.

Volatility was left at 2.12%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 2.69%, as shares surge +2.02% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading -5.26% lower at present.

During the last 5 trading sessions, SO rose by +5.53%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by -10.45% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $65.03. In addition, The Southern Company saw -4.61% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further losses.

Insider Trading

Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at SO starting from DAVIS MARTIN BERNARD, who sale 1,601 shares at the price of $62.55 back on Mar 01. After this action, DAVIS MARTIN BERNARD now owns 75,681 shares of The Southern Company, valued at $100,143 using the latest closing price.

Cummiskey Christopher, the EVP & CCCS Officer of The Southern Company, sale 1,282 shares at $66.60 during a trade that took place back on Feb 16, which means that Cummiskey Christopher is holding 27,512 shares at $85,381 based on the most recent closing price.

Stock Fundamentals for SO

Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:

• +19.33 for the present operating margin
• +24.14 for the gross margin

The net margin for The Southern Company stands at +12.07. Equity return is now at value 11.90, with 2.70 for asset returns.

The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 0.66.

Conclusion

In summary, The Southern Company (SO) has had a mixed performance as of late. Analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with some viewing it as a “buy” and others as a “hold”. It’s important to note that the stock is currently trading at a significant distance from its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.