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The Southern Company

SOMN
40
Regulated Electric · Utilities
Price
$50.01
-0.32 (-0.64%)
Market Cap
$107.61B
Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
Winston Score
40
Winston is serious
Mixed quality — meaningful strengths and weaknesses.

Share count rising — dilution

+4.5% over 4y

The company has issued more shares over this period, which dilutes each existing shareholder’s stake.

Diluted shares outstanding: 1.06B (2021) → 1.11B (2025)

Southern Company generates and delivers electricity and natural gas to millions of homes and businesses across the southeastern United States. Its main subsidiaries — Georgia Power, Alabama Power, and Mississippi Power — serve residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company is one of the largest regulated utility providers in the country and owns a significant share of the U.S. nuclear power fleet, including the Vogtle nuclear plant in Georgia.

Southern Company earns most of its revenue through regulated utility rates, meaning state regulators set the prices it can charge customers, which creates steady and predictable income. It operates primarily in Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and parts of the Southeast, with a smaller natural gas distribution business. Its regulated structure acts as a moat by limiting direct competition, but the company carries substantial debt from the costly Vogtle nuclear expansion, and rising interest rates and infrastructure investment needs remain key financial pressures going forward.

Winston Score History

Growth Profile

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

+8.0% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Slow revenue growth

EPS Growth

+0.0% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Slow EPS growth

R&D Spend

$0/ year

0.0% of revenue

Below sector average (1%)

Research and development spending

Insider Activity

0.0%ownership

Relatively low insider ownership

Cash Runway

~9 months

$5.2B cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↓ Burn rate worsening

Short runway — potential dilution ahead through share issuance

Cash watch

The Southern Company has less than a year of cash at its current burn rate. Growth investors should watch for potential share dilution from future fundraising — that directly reduces your ownership.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

Every number that matters to educated investors.

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Quality

Gross Margin
46.5%
Healthy — 46.5% gross margin
Operating Margin
24.0%
Excellent — 24.0% operating margin
ROCE
1.8%
Weak — 1.8% return on capital

ROIC between 0% and 5%. They earn a few cents back per dollar invested in the business.

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Growth

Sales YoY
+8.3%
Steady sales growth (8.3% YoY)
EPS YoY
-6.2%
Earnings shrinking (-6.2% YoY)

Slight earnings drop. Typical near a cyclical low.

EPS Consistency
2/8 quarters
Earnings rarely grow — volatile business

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Cash Flow

Cash Conversion
224%
Turns 224% of profit into real cash
FCF Margin
-12.5%
Burning cash (-12.5%)

Free cash flow is negative. They are burning cash, not generating it.

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Stability

Debt / Equity
2.01
Heavy debt load (2.01)
Interest Cover
2.16x
Tight — interest eats into profit (2.2x)

Interest coverage between 1 and 3. Profits cover interest, but with little room to spare.

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Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)
12.7x
Attractive valuation — P/E 12.7

P/E in the normal range. Price is roughly $15 for every $1 of yearly profit.

P/E vs Forward
+3.3
GROWING
Earnings expected to grow meaningfully — cheaper on forward P/E (12.7 → 9.4)

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Dividends

Dividend Yield
3.09%
Moderate income — 3.09% yield

Standard yield zone for stable dividend payers. A meaningful piece of total return.

Dividend Growth
N/A
no trend
Data not available

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