Q2 2025 EPS Estimates for The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) Lowered by Analyst

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO - Free Report) - Research analysts at Zacks Research reduced their Q2 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Southern in a report released on Wednesday, September 18th. Zacks Research analyst T. Saha now forecasts that the utilities provider will earn $1.02 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $1.04. The consensus estimate for Southern's current full-year earnings is $4.01 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southern's Q3 2025 earnings at $1.07 EPS and Q2 2026 earnings at $1.06 EPS.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on SO. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Southern in a research report on Friday. They set a "hold" rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Southern from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Mizuho downgraded Southern from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Southern from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $83.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $86.33.

Southern Stock Performance

Shares of Southern stock traded up $0.84 during trading on Friday, hitting $89.70. 9,714,616 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,473,882. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $86.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $98.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.52. Southern has a 1-year low of $61.56 and a 1-year high of $90.34.

Southern (NYSE:SO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $6.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.10 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.88% and a net margin of 17.67%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.79 EPS.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Southern

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Southern by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 100,089,634 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $7,180,430,000 after acquiring an additional 481,071 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its stake in shares of Southern by 45.9% in the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 23,994,733 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,721,382,000 after purchasing an additional 7,550,570 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Southern by 36.0% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,529,052 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $247,457,000 after acquiring an additional 934,447 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Southern by 21.3% in the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 2,572,230 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $199,528,000 after acquiring an additional 452,075 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Southern by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,542,113 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $197,192,000 after purchasing an additional 51,751 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Southern news, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $931,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,771 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,597.31. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Sloane N. Drake sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total value of $931,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 16,771 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,301,597.31. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Anthony L. Wilson sold 6,900 shares of Southern stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.61, for a total transaction of $535,509.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 85,309 shares in the company, valued at $6,620,831.49. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 27,845 shares of company stock valued at $2,266,455 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Southern Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 6th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 19th. Southern's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.42%.

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.