Southern Company
This large-cap utility leader makes sense for very conservative investors. Southern Company (NYSE: SO) engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. It constructs, acquires, owns and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy and battery energy storage projects. and sells electricity in the wholesale market.
The company distributes natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia and Tennessee, as well as provides gas marketing services, wholesale gas services and gas pipeline investments operations. It constructs, operates, and maintains 75,924 miles of natural gas pipelines and 14 storage facilities with total capacity of 157 Bcf to provide natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers.
It serves approximately 8.6 million electric and gas utility customers. It also owns or operates 30 hydroelectric generating stations, 24 fossil fuel generating stations, three nuclear-generating stations, 13 combined cycle/cogeneration stations, 44 solar facilities, 13 wind facilities, one fuel cell facility and one battery storage facility. And it provides products and services in the areas of energy efficiency and utility infrastructure. In addition, the company offers digital wireless communications and fiber optics services.
Southern Company stock investors receive a 4.00% dividend. Ladenburg Thalmann just started coverage on the stock. Its $72 target price compares with a consensus target of $73.87 and Thursday’s close was at $68.11.
Verizon Communications
This top telecommunications stock offers tremendous value at current levels. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) provides communications, technology, information and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses and governmental entities worldwide.
The Verizon Consumer Group provides wireless services across the wireless networks in the United States under the Verizon and TracFone brands and through wholesale and other arrangements, and it offers fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband through its wireless networks. It also offers wireline services in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, as well as the District of Columbia, through its fiber-optic network, Verizon Fios product portfolio and a copper-based network.
The Verizon Business Group provides wireless and wireline communications services and products, including data, video, conferencing, corporate networking, security and managed network, local and long-distance voice, network access, and various IoT services and products, as well as FWA broadband through its wireless networks.
The company has been hit hard over concerns over lead landlines, but Verizon posted solid second-quarter results as it reported an unexpected increase in wireless subscriber numbers.
The dividend yield is 7.00%. Verizon Communications stock has a $44 target price at Morgan Stanley. The consensus target is $40.13, and Wednesday’s close was at $33.27.
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