Zacks Research Weighs in on Southern's Q2 Earnings (NYSE:SO)

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q2 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Southern in a research report issued on Wednesday, May 21st. Zacks Research analyst T. Saha now expects that the utilities provider will earn $0.85 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.07. The consensus estimate for Southern's current full-year earnings is $4.29 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southern's Q4 2025 earnings at $0.62 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.22 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $1.20 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $1.11 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $4.54 EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at $1.26 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $4.84 EPS.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on SO. KeyCorp lowered shares of Southern from a "sector weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $78.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $93.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, May 2nd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Southern from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Southern has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $92.21.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of SO traded up $0.36 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $89.11. 329,602 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,485,095. The stock's fifty day moving average is $89.85 and its 200 day moving average is $87.23. The stock has a market cap of $97.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.67. Southern has a 1-year low of $76.87 and a 1-year high of $94.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $7.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.17 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.23% and a net margin of 16.47%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 17.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.03 earnings per share.

Southern Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.74 per share. This is an increase from Southern's previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.32%. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.64%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Kimberly S. Greene sold 32,190 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.12, for a total transaction of $2,997,532.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 106,819 shares in the company, valued at $9,946,985.28. This trade represents a 23.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.61, for a total value of $100,811.25. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 102,090 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,148,284.90. This trade represents a 1.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Southern

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Investors Research Corp raised its position in Southern by 400.0% in the first quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 270 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC bought a new stake in Southern in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in Southern in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Accredited Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Southern during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors own 64.10% of the company's stock.

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.