Southern Company - Unit - Series A (2019)

Strong Q3 results; raises 2026 outlook (good) - Adjusted EPS: $1.94/share in Q3’26 (+$0.34 YoY; +$0.29 vs estimate). - Key drivers: warmer weather, higher usage, customer growth, stronger commercial/industrial (incl. data centers), and higher Southern Power earnings. - Year-to-date adjusted EPS: $4.40 vs $3.76 in 2025 YTD. - Q4’26 adjusted EPS guidance: $0.30/share (implied full-year adjusted earnings ~ $4.70, $0.10 above original guidance top; ~9% YoY growth).

Demand growth is the core theme—weather-normal sales up sharply (good/surprising) - Company cited the highest weather-normal sales growth in generations: - Q3 weather-normal sales growth: +3.5% - YTD: +2.7% - All customer classes higher; commercial leading (+7.3% vs Q3’25). - Data centers: 59% higher usage in Q3 and +52% YTD, attributed to accelerating load ramps. - Residential: +1.3% Q3, adding ~15,000 electric and ~6,000 gas new residential customers. - Industrial usage: described as robust across most top segments (metals, lumber, transportation).

Load growth + customer-protective contract structure (opportunity, but also a dependency) - Signed large load contracts: now 21 GW, with +7 GW in late stages (Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi). - Q3 additions: Alabama Power and Georgia Power each added ~2 GW of contracted load. - Contracts include minimum bills decoupled from usage plus “minimum full share” economics—management argues this improves visibility and helps support affordability. - Data center/customers are paying their full share at minimum, which management says reduces risk of cost shifting to existing customers.