SO
SP100NYSEThe Southern Company
Utilities · Utilities - Regulated Electric · United States
The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the sale of electricity. The company offers electric service to retail customers and wholesale customers; and energy-related products and services to natural gas choice markets. It also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, operates, and manages power generation assets, as well as battery energy storage projects; sells electricity at market-based rates in the wholesale market; and deploys microgrids for commercial, industrial, governmental, and utility customers. In addition, the company is involved in the distribution of natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee; distributes energy and resilience solutions; and invests in telecommunications. The Southern Company was incorporated in 1945 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
www.southerncompany.com ↗Shares trade at a premium 25.1× trailing earnings, easing to 19.9× on forward estimates. Profitability shows a net margin of 14.5% and return on equity of 11.0%. Leverage is high at 5.4× net debt/EBITDA. Revenue grew 8.0% year-on-year. It yields 3.1% in dividends. The mean analyst target of USD101.13 sits 3.2% above the current price (Hold, 19 analysts).
business model
Southern Company is a regulated utility holding company that generates, transmits, and distributes electricity and distributes natural gas across the US Southeast. It earns revenue primarily through rate-regulated electric and gas utilities whose returns are set by regulators, supplemented by a competitive-generation and energy-infrastructure business.
revenue segments
Revenue comes from its regulated electric utilities (including Georgia Power, Alabama Power, and Mississippi Power), Southern Company Gas (regulated natural-gas distribution), and Southern Power (wholesale generation, including renewables). The regulated electric utilities are the largest earnings contributor.
key dependencies
Depends on constructive regulatory rate treatment, load growth (including from data centers and electrification), fuel and commodity costs, capital-expenditure recovery, interest rates given its capital intensity, and execution on generation and grid investments. Weather and economic conditions in its service territory affect demand.
competitors
As a regulated monopoly in its service territories it faces limited direct retail competition, but its Southern Power unit competes in wholesale power markets, and it competes broadly for capital with other utilities. Distributed generation, rooftop solar, and energy efficiency present longer-term competitive pressures.
moat
Its moat is the regulated-monopoly structure of its utilities, providing predictable, rate-based returns, high barriers to entry, essential-service demand, and long-lived infrastructure assets. Regulatory frameworks support recovery of large capital investments.
risks
Risks include regulatory and rate-case outcomes, large construction projects and cost overruns (as seen with the Vogtle nuclear expansion), rising interest expense on heavy debt, environmental and climate regulation, fuel-cost volatility, storm and weather exposure, and dependence on continued capital access.
Financials & metrics
as of 26 Aug 2026Price is around the middle of its range. Green = nearer the yearly low, red = nearer the high — a position indicator, not a buy/sell signal.
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Full financial statements
Income statement
| Line item | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenue | $29.55B | $26.72B | $25.25B | $29.28B | — |
| Cost of revenue | $15.23B | $13.36B | $13.48B | $18.65B | — |
| Gross profit | $14.32B | $13.36B | $11.78B | $10.63B | — |
| Operating expense | $7.04B | $6.29B | $5.95B | $5.26B | — |
| Operating income | $7.29B | $7.07B | $5.83B | $5.37B | — |
| Interest expense | $3.24B | $2.74B | $2.45B | $2.02B | — |
| Pretax income | $5.00B | $5.23B | $4.34B | $4.22B | — |
| Tax provision | $828.00M | $969.00M | $496.00M | $795.00M | — |
| Net income | $4.34B | $4.40B | $3.98B | $3.54B | — |
| EBITDA | $14.27B | $13.24B | $11.78B | $10.31B | — |
| Diluted EPS | $3.92 | $3.99 | $3.62 | $3.26 | — |
Balance sheet
| Line item | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total assets | $155.72B | $145.18B | $139.33B | $134.89B | — |
| Current assets | $10.92B | $10.69B | $10.43B | $10.42B | — |
| Cash & equivalents | $1.64B | $1.07B | $748.00M | $1.92B | — |
| Inventory | $3.33B | $3.37B | $3.35B | $2.68B | — |
| Total liabilities | $116.85B | $108.51B | $104.11B | $100.36B | — |
| Current liabilities | $16.89B | $15.99B | $13.47B | $15.72B | — |
| Total debt | $74.08B | $66.28B | $63.49B | $59.13B | — |
| Long-term debt | $65.65B | $58.77B | $57.21B | $50.66B | — |
| Shareholders' equity | $36.02B | $33.21B | $31.44B | $30.41B | — |
| Retained earnings | $14.86B | $13.75B | $12.48B | $11.54B | — |
| Working capital | -$5.97B | -$5.30B | -$3.04B | -$5.31B | — |
Cash flow
| Line item | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating cash flow | $9.80B | $9.79B | $7.55B | $6.30B | — |
| Investing cash flow | -$13.96B | -$9.40B | -$9.67B | -$8.43B | — |
| Financing cash flow | $4.70B | -$208.00M | $999.00M | $2.34B | — |
| Capital expenditure | -$12.74B | -$8.96B | -$9.10B | -$7.92B | — |
| Free cash flow | -$2.94B | $833.00M | -$1.54B | -$1.62B | — |
| Dividends paid | -$3.02B | -$2.95B | -$3.04B | -$2.91B | — |
| Share buybacks | — | $0.00 | $0.00 | -$298.00M | $0.00 |
| End cash position | $1.64B | $1.10B | $921.00M | $2.04B | — |
Reported figures from public filings via Yahoo Finance. Line coverage varies by company. Not investment advice.
Dividends
Analyst assessment
as of 26 Aug 2026Aggregate consensus only. Named per-analyst targets require a premium source and are not shown; the data model is ready to hold them if one is added.
Technicals
as of 26 Aug 2026News
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