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Southern Co. (SO) Stock Moves -0.32%: What You Should Know
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Southern Co. (SO - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $67.90, moving -0.32% from the previous trading session. This change was narrower than the S&P 500's 1.1% loss on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 1.19%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 3.27%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the power company had gained 3.43% over the past month. This has outpaced the Utilities sector's loss of 0.06% and the S&P 500's loss of 3.02% in that time.
Investors will be hoping for strength from Southern Co. as it approaches its next earnings release. On that day, Southern Co. is projected to report earnings of $0.79 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 18.56%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $6.88 billion, up 3.46% from the prior-year quarter.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $3.62 per share and revenue of $29.27 billion, which would represent changes of +0.56% and -0.04%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Southern Co.These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 1% lower. Southern Co. is currently a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Digging into valuation, Southern Co. currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 18.83. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 17.26, so we one might conclude that Southern Co. is trading at a premium comparatively.
Meanwhile, SO's PEG ratio is currently 4.71. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Utility - Electric Power was holding an average PEG ratio of 2.93 at yesterday's closing price.
The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 97, which puts it in the top 39% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.
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Southern Co. (SO) Stock Moves -0.32%: What You Should Know
Southern Co. (SO - Free Report) closed the most recent trading day at $67.90, moving -0.32% from the previous trading session. This change was narrower than the S&P 500's 1.1% loss on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 1.19%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 3.27%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the power company had gained 3.43% over the past month. This has outpaced the Utilities sector's loss of 0.06% and the S&P 500's loss of 3.02% in that time.
Investors will be hoping for strength from Southern Co. as it approaches its next earnings release. On that day, Southern Co. is projected to report earnings of $0.79 per share, which would represent a year-over-year decline of 18.56%. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $6.88 billion, up 3.46% from the prior-year quarter.
For the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $3.62 per share and revenue of $29.27 billion, which would represent changes of +0.56% and -0.04%, respectively, from the prior year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for Southern Co.These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 1% lower. Southern Co. is currently a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
Digging into valuation, Southern Co. currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 18.83. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 17.26, so we one might conclude that Southern Co. is trading at a premium comparatively.
Meanwhile, SO's PEG ratio is currently 4.71. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Utility - Electric Power was holding an average PEG ratio of 2.93 at yesterday's closing price.
The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 97, which puts it in the top 39% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
You can find more information on all of these metrics, and much more, on Zacks.com.