Southern (NYSE:SO) Issues Earnings Results

Southern (NYSE:SO) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The utilities provider reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.21 by $0.11, FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.26 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 14.69%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share.

Southern Stock Performance

NYSE SO traded up $3.15 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $96.66. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,323,404 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,665,363. Southern has a 12 month low of $83.09 and a 12 month high of $100.83. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $95.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $92.12. The company has a market cap of $109.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

Southern Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 8th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This is a positive change from Southern’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.74. Southern’s dividend payout ratio is 75.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Christopher Cummiskey sold 6,669 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.55, for a total value of $643,891.95. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 30,800 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,973,740. This trade represents a 17.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 25,000 shares of Southern stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.67, for a total value of $2,416,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 103,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,015,205.34. The trade was a 19.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in Southern by 18.7% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 34,459,462 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,004,866,000 after purchasing an additional 5,436,212 shares during the last quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP boosted its position in Southern by 83.8% in the second quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 4,097,422 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $376,266,000 after purchasing an additional 1,867,912 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in Southern in the fourth quarter worth about $131,968,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in Southern by 1,518.4% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,044,101 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $95,880,000 after purchasing an additional 979,587 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in Southern by 790.6% in the second quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 811,737 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $74,542,000 after purchasing an additional 720,589 shares during the last quarter. 64.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Southern

Here are the key news stories impacting Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on both EPS and revenue — adjusted EPS came in at $1.32 versus ~$1.21 consensus, and revenue was $8.40B vs. $8.26B expected; margins and ROE improved year-over-year, supporting near-term earnings quality. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Higher power demand helped drive the beat and improved results, a cyclical tailwind that boosts near-term utility cash flow and earnings. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Longer-term guidance shows continued growth: FY2028 EPS range of 5.25–5.45 suggests management expects continued earnings expansion beyond near-term variability (supports long-horizon investor thesis).
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/target upgrades and estimate tweaks — small lift from Erste and a Wells Fargo price-target increase signal modest analyst support following results. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Company released slides and conference materials for the quarter; useful for modeling regulatory drivers, rate cases and capital spend but no new regulatory news in the release. Slide Deck
• Neutral Sentiment: Deeper metrics analyses are available that compare Q1 results to estimates and last year; useful for modeling but not headline-moving by themselves. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Near-term guidance was slightly cautious — FY2026 EPS guidance of 4.50–4.60 has a midpoint a hair below consensus (~4.57) and Q2 guidance of 1.00 is below the ~1.02 estimate, leaving limited upside for the rest of the year if demand softens.
• Negative Sentiment: Relative-valuation/peer concerns: some analysts favor peers (e.g., Vistra) due to cheaper valuation or more aggressive clean-energy investments, which could limit multiple expansion for SO. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on SO. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Mizuho set a $104.00 price target on Southern and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of Southern in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Southern in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Southern currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.08.

About Southern

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an Atlanta-based energy holding company that provides electric and gas utility services and owns power generation assets across the United States. Founded in 1945, the company operates a portfolio of regulated electric utilities and affiliated businesses that generate, transmit and distribute electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Southern’s principal regulated electric subsidiaries include Georgia Power, Alabama Power and Mississippi Power, which serve large portions of the southeastern United States.