Zacks Research Brokers Boost Earnings Estimates for Southern

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) – Zacks Research upped their Q3 2025 earnings estimates for Southern in a report released on Thursday, December 19th. Zacks Research analyst T. Saha now anticipates that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $1.26 for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $1.23. The consensus estimate for Southern’s current full-year earnings is $4.03 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Southern’s Q2 2026 earnings at $1.12 EPS.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on SO. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Southern in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $94.00 target price for the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Southern from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Southern from $93.00 to $97.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Southern from $99.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Southern from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $90.14.

Southern Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SO opened at $83.16 on Monday. Southern has a twelve month low of $65.80 and a twelve month high of $94.45. 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 market cap of $91.12 billion, a PE ratio of 19.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.51. The company’s 50 day moving average is $87.86 and its 200 day moving average is $85.74.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $7.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.14 billion. Southern had a return on equity of 12.78% and a net margin of 17.87%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.42 EPS.

Institutional Trading of Southern

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in Southern by 168.1% during the third quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Southern by 34.7% during the 3rd quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 129 shares during the last quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Southern during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Southern in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in Southern in the third quarter worth approximately $54,000. 64.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Southern

In related news, EVP Martin Bernard Davis sold 1,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.90, for a total transaction of $100,503.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 88,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,592,958.70. This represents a 1.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO James Y. Kerr II sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.64, for a total transaction of $2,689,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 145,088 shares in the company, valued at $13,005,688.32. This trade represents a 17.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Southern Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a dividend of $0.72 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.98%.

About Southern

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.