The Southern Company Just Beat Earnings Expectations: Here's What Analysts Think Will Happen Next
The Southern Company Just Beat Earnings Expectations: Here's What Analysts Think Will Happen Next
The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) defied analyst predictions to release its second-quarter results, which were ahead of market expectations. It was overall a positive result, with revenues beating expectations by 5.6% to hit US$6.5b. Southern reported statutory earnings per share (EPS) US$1.10, which was a notable 18% above what the analysts had forecast. Earnings are an important time for investors, as they can track a company's performance, look at what the analysts are forecasting for next year, and see if there's been a change in sentiment towards the company. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Southern after the latest results.
南方公司(NYSE:SO)发布了2024年第二季度业绩报告，超出了分析师的预期。营业收入以65亿美元的成绩成功地超过市场预期，超出5.6%。南方公司报告的法定每股收益(EPS)为1.10美元，比分析师预测的高出18%。对投资者来说，收益是一个重要的时间点，他们可以追踪公司的表现，查看分析师对明年的预测，以及观察公司的情绪变化。读者会很高兴地知道，我们已经综合了最新的法定预测，看看分析师在最新的业绩数据公布后是否对南方公司改变了看法。
Taking into account the latest results, Southern's 14 analysts currently expect revenues in 2024 to be US$26.5b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Statutory earnings per share are forecast to dip 4.7% to US$4.01 in the same period. Before this earnings report, the analysts had been forecasting revenues of US$26.4b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$3.98 in 2024. The consensus analysts don't seem to have seen anything in these results that would have changed their view on the business, given there's been no major change to their estimates.
考虑到最新业绩，南方公司的14位分析师目前预计，2024年的营业收入将达到265亿美元，与过去12个月基本一致。法定每股收益预计在同一时期下降4.7%，至4.01美元。在这份收益报告之前，分析师曾预测2024年营收为264亿美元，每股收益(EPS)为3.98美元。共识分析师似乎没有看到这些结果中有什么改变，因为他们的估计没有发生重大变化。
The analysts reconfirmed their price target of US$81.87, showing that the business is executing well and in line with expectations. Fixating on a single price target can be unwise though, since the consensus target is effectively the average of analyst price targets. As a result, some investors like to look at the range of estimates to see if there are any diverging opinions on the company's valuation. Currently, the most bullish analyst values Southern at US$94.00 per share, while the most bearish prices it at US$70.00. Still, with such a tight range of estimates, it suggeststhe analysts have a pretty good idea of what they think the company is worth.
分析师确认了南方公司的目标股价为81.87美元，表明业务的执行情况良好，符合预期。然而，过于关注单一的价格目标可能是不明智的，因为共识目标实际上是分析师股票价格目标的平均值。因此，一些投资者喜欢查看估计范围，以了解对公司估价是否存在分歧。目前，最看好的分析师将南方公司的股价估值为每股94.00美元，而最看淡的分析师则将其定价为每股70.00美元。然而，估计范围如此狭窄，这表明分析师对公司的价值有很好的认识。
Of course, another way to look at these forecasts is to place them into context against the industry itself. It's pretty clear that there is an expectation that Southern's revenue growth will slow down substantially, with revenues to the end of 2024 expected to display 3.0% growth on an annualised basis. This is compared to a historical growth rate of 6.4% over the past five years. Compare this against other companies (with analyst forecasts) in the industry, which are in aggregate expected to see revenue growth of 4.6% annually. Factoring in the forecast slowdown in growth, it seems obvious that Southern is also expected to grow slower than other industry participants.
当然，另一种看待这些预测的方法是将它们与整个行业相比较。很明显，人们预计南方公司的营收增长将会显著放缓，预计截至2024年的年化增长率为3.0%。与过去五年的增长率6.4%相比，增长缓慢。与其他行业参与者（具有分析师预测）相比，预计总体营收年增长率为4.6%。考虑到增长放缓的预测，南方公司也预计增长速度将低于其他行业参与者。
The Bottom Line
最重要的事情是分析师增加了它对下一年每股亏损的估计。令人欣慰的是，营收预测未发生重大变化，业务仍有望比整个行业增长更快。共识价格目标稳定在28.50美元，最新估计不足以对价格目标产生影响。
The most important thing to take away is that there's been no major change in sentiment, with the analysts reconfirming that the business is performing in line with their previous earnings per share estimates. On the plus side, there were no major changes to revenue estimates; although forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.
最重要的是，没有主要的情绪变化，分析师重申该业务的表现符合他们以前的每股盈利预期。好的一面是，营业收入预测没有发生重大变化，尽管预测表明他们的表现将低于整个行业。对共识股价目标没有真正的改变，表明最新的估计值没有使该业务的内在价值发生重大变化。
Following on from that line of thought, we think that the long-term prospects of the business are much more relevant than next year's earnings. We have forecasts for Southern going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.
继而，我们认为企业的长期前景比明年的收益更加有关。我们对南方公司的预测延伸到2026年，您可以在我们的平台上免费查看预测。
And what about risks? Every company has them, and we've spotted 3 warning signs for Southern (of which 1 is a bit concerning!) you should know about.
那么风险呢？每个公司都有风险，我们已经发现南方公司存在3个警告信号（其中1个有点令人担忧），您应该了解一下。
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