Southern Company (SO · NYSE)

Southern Company shares have fallen 10.0% over the past three months to $85.52, closing below the $99.76 analyst target and drawing a price-target cut from Morgan Stanley to $85 (Underweight), with the stock near oversold territory (RSI 32) on volume 2.4x its 20-day average. Earnings momentum remains solid — the company beat estimates in three of its last four quarters, including $1.13 versus $1.01 expected in the quarter ended June 30, driving earnings growth of 30.4% YoY on essentially flat revenue (0.1%). The balance sheet carries typical regulated-utility leverage at 5.4x debt/EBITDA on $77.09B of total debt, and free cash flow was negative $293.0M last quarter as capex ($2.94B) outpaced operating cash flow ($2.65B). Regulatory sentiment is a watch item, as Georgia's Public Service Commission faced public criticism in Savannah over data-center-driven power bills.