Second-quarter profit beat analyst estimates as electricity demand strengthened across the Southeast, but revenue missed Wall Street expectations and the utility maintained its full-year outlook.
Southern Company reported second-quarter 2026 net income attributable to the company of $1.17 billion, or $1.03 per share, up from $880 million, or $0.80 per share, a year earlier, as stronger electricity demand, customer growth, higher earnings from equity method investments and lower income taxes more than offset higher interest expense. Adjusted earnings were $1.13 per share, ahead of the analyst consensus estimate of $1.00, while operating revenue was essentially flat at $6.98 billion versus $6.97 billion a year earlier and below the Street estimate of $7.23 billion, pressuring the stock in Wednesday trading. For the first six months of 2026, earnings rose 14% to $2.5 billion from $2.2 billion, while operating revenue increased 4.2% to $15.4 billion from $14.7 billion. Total kilowatt-hour sales increased 3.9%, driven by a 2.1% rise in retail sales and a 9.2% gain in wholesale sales, with commercial demand up 7.3%, industrial sales up 0.1% and residential sales down 1.5%. Southern Company ended the quarter serving 9 million regulated utility customers, up 0.7% from a year earlier. Revenue was mixed across operating businesses, with gains at Georgia Power and Mississippi Power offset by declines at Alabama Power, Southern Power and Southern Company Gas. The company maintained its fiscal 2026 adjusted earnings guidance of $4.50 to $4.60 per share and its fiscal 2028 adjusted EPS outlook of $5.25 to $5.45, while forecasting third-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.65 per share, just below the Wall Street estimate of $1.66. Chris Womack, chairman, president and CEO, said economic development and power demand growth across the Southeast continue to create opportunities as the company invests for long-term expansion while focusing on reliability and rate stability.