We’re reader-supported and may be paid when you visit links to partner sites. We don’t compare all products in the market, but we’re working on it!
The Southern Company (SO) is a leading utilities-regulated electric business with stocks listed in the US. It opened the day at US$61.66 after a previous close of US$61.55. During the day the price has varied from a low of USD61.055 to a high of USD61.78. The latest price was USD61.47 (25 minute delay). The Southern Company is listed on the NYSE. All prices are listed in US Dollars.
Our top pick for
US stocks
Our top pick for
ETF investing
Our top pick for
Overall broker
| Open | US$61.66 |
|---|---|
| High | US$61.78 |
| Low | US$61.055 |
| Close | US$61.47 |
| Previous close | US$61.55 |
| Change | US$-0.08 |
| Change % | -0.13% |
| Volume | 3,473,373 |
| 52-week range | US$54.6439 - US$67.54 |
|---|---|
| 50-day moving average | US$63.7509 |
| 200-day moving average | US$64.0277 |
| Target price | US$67.27 |
| PE ratio | 21.339 |
| Dividend yield | US$2.58 (4.02%) |
| Earnings per share (TTM) | US$2.95 |
The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.
Use the fields above to explore the returns from a historical investment. Please refer to the charts further up this page to see performance over 5 years, or other periods. Past performance doesn't indicate future results. Capital is at risk.
Historical closes compared with the last close of $61.47
| 1 week (2021-10-14) | -2.83% |
|---|---|
| 1 month (2021-09-24) | -2.68% |
| 3 months (2021-07-23) | -3.74% |
| 6 months (2021-04-23) | -5.91% |
| 1 year (2020-10-23) | 1.02% |
|---|---|
| 2 years (2019-10-24) | -0.77% |
| 3 years (2018-10-24) | 33.57% |
| 5 years (2016-10-24) | 20.88% |
Valuing The Southern Company stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of The Southern Company's overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge the value of a stock.
The Southern Company's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 21x. In other words, The Southern Company shares trade at around 21x recent earnings.
That's relatively low compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29). The low P/E ratio could mean that investors are pessimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're under-valued.
The Southern Company's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 3.4015. A low ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer better value, while a higher ratio can be interpreted as meaning the shares offer worse value.
The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into The Southern Company's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.
The Southern Company's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is US$9.6 billion (£7 billion).
The EBITDA is a measure of a The Southern Company's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.
| Revenue TTM | US$21.8 billion |
|---|---|
| Operating margin TTM | 25.82% |
| Gross profit TTM | US$9.9 billion |
| Return on assets TTM | 2.87% |
| Return on equity TTM | 9.52% |
| Profit margin | 14.41% |
| Book value | 26.632 |
| Market capitalisation | US$66.7 billion |
TTM: trailing 12 months
There are currently 10.1 million The Southern Company shares held short by investors – that's known as The Southern Company's "short interest". This figure is 12.1% down from 11.5 million last month.
There are a few different ways that this level of interest in shorting The Southern Company shares can be evaluated.
The Southern Company's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of The Southern Company shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of The Southern Company shares traded daily (recently around 4.2 million). The Southern Company's SIR currently stands at 2.42. In other words for every 100,000 The Southern Company shares traded daily on the market, roughly 2420 shares are currently held short.
However The Southern Company's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of The Southern Company shares, or, against the total number of tradable The Southern Company shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case The Southern Company's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 The Southern Company shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.0095% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable The Southern Company shares, roughly 10 shares are currently held short).
Such a low SIR usually points to an optimistic outlook for the share price, with fewer people currently willing to bet against The Southern Company.
Find out more about how you can short The Southern Company stock.
Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like The Southern Company.
When it comes to ESG scores, lower is better, and lower scores are generally associated with lower risk for would-be investors.
Total ESG risk: 30.08
Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and The Southern Company's overall score of 30.08 (as at 12/31/2018) is pretty weak – landing it in it in the 64th percentile of companies rated in the same sector.
ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like The Southern Company is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).
Environmental score: 12.26/100
The Southern Company's environmental score of 12.26 puts it squarely in the 2nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that The Southern Company is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
Social score: 11.85/100
The Southern Company's social score of 11.85 puts it squarely in the 2nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that The Southern Company is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.
Governance score: 4.97/100
The Southern Company's governance score puts it squarely in the 2nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that The Southern Company is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.
Controversy score: 2/5
ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. The Southern Company scored a 2 out of 5 for controversy – the second-highest score possible, reflecting that The Southern Company has, for the most part, managed to keep its nose clean.
The Southern Company was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.
| Total ESG score | 30.08 |
|---|---|
| Total ESG percentile | 63.54 |
| Environmental score | 12.26 |
| Environmental score percentile | 2 |
| Social score | 11.85 |
| Social score percentile | 2 |
| Governance score | 4.97 |
| Governance score percentile | 2 |
| Level of controversy | 2 |
Dividend payout ratio: 74.64% of net profits
Recently The Southern Company has paid out, on average, around 74.64% of net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 4.19% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), The Southern Company shareholders could enjoy a 4.19% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In The Southern Company's case, that would currently equate to about $2.58 per share.
The Southern Company's payout ratio would broadly be considered high, and as such this stock could appeal to those looking to generate an income. Bear in mind however that companies should normally also look to re-invest a decent amount of net profits to ensure future growth.
The Southern Company's most recent dividend payout was on 6 September 2021. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 11 November 2021 (the "ex-dividend date").
The Southern Company's shares were split on a 10000:6109 basis on 2 April 2001. So if you had owned 6109 shares the day before before the split, the next day you'd have owned 10000 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your The Southern Company shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 38.9% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for The Southern Company shares which in turn could have impacted The Southern Company's share price.
Over the last 12 months, The Southern Company's shares have ranged in value from as little as US$54.6439 up to US$67.54. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".
Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while The Southern Company's is 0.4672. This would suggest that The Southern Company's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).
The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. It operates in four segments: Gas Distribution Operations, Gas Pipeline Investments, Wholesale Gas Services, and Gas Marketing Services. The company also constructs, acquires, owns, and manages power generation assets, including renewable energy and battery energy storage 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, wholesale gas services, and gas pipeline investments operations. It owns and/or operates 30 hydroelectric generating stations, 24 fossil fuel generating stations, 3 nuclear generating stations, 13 combined cycle/cogeneration stations, 44 solar facilities, 13 wind facilities, 1 fuel cell facility, and 1 battery storage facility; and constructs, operates, and maintains 75,924 miles of natural gas pipelines and 14 storage facilities with total capacity of 157 Bcf to provide natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company serves approximately 8.6 million electric and gas utility customers. It also provides products and services in the areas of energy efficiency, and utility infrastructure. In addition, the company offers digital wireless communications and fiber optics services. The Southern Company was incorporated in 1945 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Steps to owning and managing ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF units.
Shares in the wealth management giant have been largely stable in the last 6 months.
Everything we know about the Judo Capital Holdings IPO, plus information on how to buy in.
Everything we know about the Alloggio Group IPO, plus information on how to buy in.
Everything we know about the Larvotto Resources IPO, plus information on how to buy in.
Everything we know about the Vulcan Steel IPO, plus information on how to buy in.
Everything we know about the Artrya IPO, plus information on how to buy in.
Everything we know about the 8 Au IPO, plus information on how to buy in.
Everything we know about the Radiopharm Theranostics IPO, plus information on how to buy in.
The online retailer’s shares have lost more than half their value in the last 12 months.
