The Southern Company

For Q2 2026, Southern reported adjusted EPS of $1.13 per share, which was $0.21 higher than Q2 2025 and $0.13 above the company’s estimate. First-half adjusted EPS was $2.46. Management said year-to-date weather-normal retail electricity sales were 2.3% higher than the first half of 2025, weather-normal commercial sales were up 6% year to date, and data-center usage was 55% higher year over year in the quarter and up 49% year to date. The company now expects full-year 2026 adjusted earnings to be near or at the top of its $4.50 to $4.60 guidance range, with Q3 adjusted EPS estimated at $1.50.

Christopher Womack emphasized that Southern is benefiting from “extraordinary” economic development momentum across the Southeast, especially from data centers and other large-load customers. He framed the company’s vertically integrated, state-regulated model as a competitive advantage that allows it to add load, generation, and infrastructure in a coordinated way while keeping rates stable. His tone was highly confident and upbeat, repeatedly pointing to a “bright future,” rate stability through 2028 in Georgia and Alabama, and the prospect of additional large-load and infrastructure opportunities.

David Poroch said second-quarter adjusted EPS of $1.13 reflected higher usage and customer growth, higher AFUDC from ongoing construction, higher equity-method earnings, and tax impacts at regulated utilities, partly offset by higher interest expense and share dilution. He highlighted strong retail sales trends, approximately 11,000 new residential customers in the quarter, and data-center load that now exceeds 1.2 GW, up more than 500 MW from a year ago. On capital and financing, he said Southern added $700 million of equity through the ATM program in Q2, reduced the remaining equity need by 2030 to $1.1 billion, and remains on track toward 17% FFO-to-debt by 2029.

Analysts focused on how the new load pipeline could affect regulation, generation needs, and capital spending, especially after the OpenAI contract and the 3 GW of newly signed Alabama load. Management said the projects create optionality for rate stability, but it would not get ahead of regulators; it also said the Georgia OpenAI contract pushes the company about 1 GW beyond recently approved capacity. Questions on Southern Power centered on recontracting as tolling deals roll off and whether hyperscalers might share cost-overrun risk on new nuclear; management said recontracting conversations are underway, and it is having discussions with hyperscalers about their role, but nothing firm was concluded.