Southern Company Exceeds Expectations with Strong First Quarter 2025 Earnings
The Southern Company recently released its first quarter 2025 earnings results, exceeding expectations and reflecting year-over-year growth across all major businesses. In a conference call on April 25th, the company's leadership provided an update on their performance and outlook for the remainder of the year.
According to Christopher Womack, Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Southern Company, the Southeast has demonstrated economic resilience, with robust development activity and significant industrial load pipeline growth. The company's state-regulated electric utilities have also seen customer growth, with commercial and industrial customers increasingly drawn to their service territories due to the reliability and resilience of their vertically integrated grid.
"Our service territories remain attractive to a wide variety of commercial and industrial customers," said Womack. "The reliability and resilience of our vertically integrated and well-planned grid is hard to beat, and customers – especially data center customers – are increasingly acknowledging that reality with their enthusiasm for our electric service territories."
One topic of interest during the conference call was the potential impact of tariffs on the company's business. While there is policy uncertainty surrounding tariffs, Southern Company estimates a range of 1% to 3% potential cost increases based on current tariff levels. However, the company is proactively working with vendors to mitigate these costs and has a comprehensive plan in place to deploy alternative resources and manage contingencies.
"We do not expect a material impact to our forecast," said Womack. "Our financial outlook remains strong, and we remain focused on disciplined execution."
Financially, Southern Company reported adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.23 for the first quarter 2025, representing a $0.20 increase from the same period in 2024 and $0.03 above the company's estimate. The primary drivers of this performance were investments in state-regulated utilities and weather-related impacts, which added $0.08 year-over-year due to a milder than normal first quarter in 2024.
The company also reported adjusted EPS estimate for the second quarter at $0.85 per share, with overall retail electricity sales experiencing a 0.3% decrease compared to the same period last year.
