Power supplier The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) reported first-quarter 2017 earnings per share (excluding certain one-time items) of 66 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 58 cents and the year-ago adjusted profit of 58 cents. Increase in revenues improved earnings.
The Atlanta-based utility’s quarterly revenues of $5,771 million was 45.5% higher than the first-quarter 2016 level of $3,965 million and also ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5,144 million, driven by robust performance by its wholesale unit.
Sales Report
While wholesale revenues jumped 37%, Southern Company’s total retail sales declined 6.7%, residential and commercial sales were down by 13.4% and 4.5%, respectively. Demand from industrial customers also fell 2.2% from the year-ago period.
Total electricity sales during the first quarter were up 0.5% from the same period last year.
Expenses Break Up
Southern Company’s operations and maintenance cost increased 20% to $1,329 million, while the utility’s total operating expense for the period was $4,465 million, up 46.3% from the prior-year level.
Southern Company (The) Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Zacks Rank and Key Pick
Southern Company under the Zacks categorized Utility - ElectricPower industry is one of the largest generators of electricity in the nation along with the likes of Exelon Corp. (NYSE:EXC) and Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE:DUK) . The company currently carries a Zacks Rank #4(Sell).
A better-ranked player from the same industry is TransAtlanta Corporation (NYSE:TAC) , sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
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Exelon Corporation (EXC): Free Stock Analysis Report
Southern Company (The) (SO): Free Stock Analysis Report
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