Southern Earnings Up Next (SO)

Southern Earnings Up Next

Southern (NYSE: SO ) is expected to report Q3 earnings on Oct. 31. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

The 10-second takeaway
Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict Southern's revenues will grow 10.0% and EPS will increase 6.6%.

The average estimate for revenue is $5.97 billion. On the bottom line, the average EPS estimate is $1.13.

Revenue details
Last quarter, Southern tallied revenue of $4.18 billion. GAAP reported sales were 7.5% lower than the prior-year quarter's $4.52 billion.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Dollar amounts in millions. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

EPS details
Last quarter, non-GAAP EPS came in at $0.69. GAAP EPS of $0.71 for Q2 were 1.4% higher than the prior-year quarter's $0.70 per share.

Source: S&P Capital IQ. Quarterly periods. Non-GAAP figures may vary to maintain comparability with estimates.

Recent performance
For the preceding quarter, gross margin was 43.0%, 330 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Operating margin was 26.9%, 180 basis points better than the prior-year quarter. Net margin was 14.9%, 150 basis points better than the prior-year quarter.

Looking ahead

The full year's average estimate for revenue is $18.03 billion. The average EPS estimate is $2.64.

Investor sentiment
The stock has a four-star rating (out of five) at Motley Fool CAPS, with 1,022 members out of 1,078 rating the stock outperform, and 56 members rating it underperform. Among 301 CAPS All-Star picks (recommendations by the highest-ranked CAPS members), 292 give Southern a green thumbs-up, and nine give it a red thumbs-down.

Of Wall Street recommendations tracked by S&P Capital IQ, the average opinion on Southern is hold, with an average price target of $45.88.

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Seth Jayson had no position in any company mentioned here at the time of publication. You can view his stock holdings here. He is co-advisor of Motley Fool Hidden Gems, which provides new small-cap ideas every month, backed by a real-money portfolio. The Motley Fool has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. Motley Fool newsletter services recommend Southern Company. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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