With a market cap of $105.5 billion, The Southern Company (SO) provides electricity to both retail and wholesale customers, along with energy-related products and services in natural gas markets. It also develops and operates power generation assets, invests in energy infrastructure like battery storage and microgrids, and is involved in natural gas distribution and telecommunications.
The Atlanta, Georgia-based company is expected to unveil its fiscal Q1 2026 results before the market opens on Thursday, Apr. 30. Ahead of the event, analysts anticipate SO to report an adjusted EPS of $1.22, down marginally from $1.23 in the year-ago quarter. It has surpassed Wall Street's bottom-line estimates in three of the past four quarters while missing on another occasion.
For fiscal 2026, analysts expect the company to report adjusted EPS of $4.58, a 6.5% rise from $4.30 in fiscal 2025. Moreover, adjusted EPS is projected to grow 7.6% year-over-year to $4.93 in fiscal 2027.
SO stock has gained 3.2% over the past 52 weeks, underperforming both the S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 38.3% return and the State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF's (XLU) 19.6% increase over the same period.
Shares of Southern Company rose 4.4% on Feb. 19 after investors reacted positively to its stronger adjusted EPS, which increased to $0.55 in Q4 2025 from $0.50 a year earlier and to $4.30 for full-year 2025 from $4.05. The rally was also supported by solid revenue growth, with Q4 operating revenue up 10.1% to $7 billion and full-year revenue rising 10.6% to $29.6 billion, reflecting higher utility demand. Positive sentiment was further driven by management’s optimistic outlook on meeting rising energy demand, which outweighed the drop in reported net income to $416 million from $534 million in Q4.
Analysts' consensus rating on SO stock is cautiously optimistic, with an overall "Moderate Buy" rating. Out of 24 analysts covering the stock, opinions include six "Strong Buys," one "Moderate Buy," 16 "Holds," and one "Strong Sell." The average analyst price target is $102.86, indicating a potential upside of 11% from the current levels.
On the date of publication, Sohini Mondal did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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