Southern (NYSE:SO) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Southern Company (The) (NYSE:SO) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $91.04, but opened at $95.50. Southern shares last traded at $94.4570, with a volume of 4,283,565 shares changing hands.

Southern News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Southern this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company raised Q1 2026 guidance sharply to $1.20 (vs. Street ~$0.83), signaling stronger near-term earnings visibility and support from large-load customers. Southern Company reports fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings
• Positive Sentiment: FY 2026 EPS guidance was updated to $4.50–$4.60, slightly above consensus (~$4.45), which supports a higher multi-quarter outlook. Southern Company reports fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Q4 revenue came in above estimates ($6.98B vs. ~$6.41B), showing top-line growth (+10.1% YoY) that helped offset a slight EPS miss. Press Release / Slide Deck
• Neutral Sentiment: Georgia Power (a Southern unit) filed rate cases seeking lower customer costs beginning in June — regulatory moves that reduce customer bills but can affect timing and structure of utility recovery. Georgia Power filings
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage consensus remains a “Hold,” reflecting mixed analyst views despite guidance upside. Consensus Recommendation
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reports Southern forecasted annual profit below some analysts’ estimates while also raising its five-year spending plan to support demand from large-load customers — higher capex and a below-consensus profit outlook are potential near-term headwinds. Reuters: Forecasts below estimates, raises spending plan
• Negative Sentiment: Southern missed Q4 EPS by a penny ($0.55 vs. $0.56 expected), which, along with year-over-year declines in certain GAAP metrics, tempers the upside from guidance. Zacks: Misses Q4 earnings
• Negative Sentiment: Company reported lower Q4 and full-year 2025 GAAP earnings versus the prior year (press release), underscoring some operational and timing pressures. PR Newswire: Q4 and FY 2025 results

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $105.00 target price on shares of Southern in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Barclays lowered their target price on Southern from $91.00 to $88.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and set a $85.00 price target on shares of Southern in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Southern from $98.00 to $94.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of Southern from $87.00 to $76.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Southern presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $94.91.

Southern Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $91.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The company has a market cap of $103.69 billion, a PE ratio of 23.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.45.

Southern (NYSE:SO) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The utilities provider reported $0.55 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $6.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.41 billion. Southern had a net margin of 15.42% and a return on equity of 12.52%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.50 earnings per share. Southern has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.200-1.20 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.500-4.600 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Southern Company will post 4.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Southern Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $0.74 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $2.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Southern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.27%.

Institutional Trading of Southern

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Southern by 0.5% in the third quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 21,461 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,034,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Southern by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,443,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC lifted its position in shares of Southern by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 4,697 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $431,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Southern by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 15,667 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,485,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, Sara Bay Financial increased its holdings in Southern by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sara Bay Financial now owns 4,133 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.10% of the company’s stock.

About Southern

Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is an Atlanta-based energy holding company that provides electric and gas utility services and owns power generation assets across the United States. Founded in 1945, the company operates a portfolio of regulated electric utilities and affiliated businesses that generate, transmit and distribute electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Southern’s principal regulated electric subsidiaries include Georgia Power, Alabama Power and Mississippi Power, which serve large portions of the southeastern United States.