Sifting through countless of stocks in the Electric Utilities industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in NextEra Energy, Inc. or The Southern Company because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company

NextEra Energy, Inc., through its subsidiaries, generates, stores, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power to retail and wholesale customers in North America. It operates through Florida Power & Light Company (FPL) and NEER segments. The company generates electricity from wind, solar, nuclear, natural gas, and other clean energy assets. It also invests in generation, storage, transmission, and distribution facilities; owns, develops, constructs, manages, and operates generation facilities, including renewables, nuclear and natural gas, and battery storage facilities in the wholesale energy market in the United States and Canada, as well as electric and gas transmission assets, and natural gas pipelines; provides full energy and capacity requirement services; markets and trades in energy-related commodities; and participates in the production of natural gas, natural gas liquids, and oil. As of December 31, 2025, the company had approximately 35,963 megawatts of net generating capacity; approximately 93,000 circuit miles of transmission and distribution lines; and 932 substations. It serves approximately 12 million people through approximately 6 million customer accounts on the east and lower west coasts of Florida. The company was formerly known as FPL Group, Inc. and changed its name to NextEra Energy, Inc. in 2010. NextEra Energy, Inc. was founded in 1925 and is headquartered in Juno Beach, Florida.

The Southern Company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the sale of electricity. The company offers electric service to retail customers and wholesale customers; and energy-related products and services to natural gas choice markets. It also develops, constructs, acquires, owns, operates, and manages power generation assets, as well as battery energy storage projects; sells electricity at market-based rates in the wholesale market; and deploys microgrids for commercial, industrial, governmental, and utility customers. In addition, the company is involved in the distribution of natural gas in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, and Tennessee; distributes energy and resilience solutions; and invests in telecommunications. The Southern Company was incorporated in 1945 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Latest Electric Utilities and NextEra Energy, Inc., The Southern Company Stock News

As of April 17, 2026, NextEra Energy, Inc. had a $191.8 billion market capitalization, compared to the Electric Utilities median of $19.4 million. NextEra Energy, Inc.’s stock is up 14.6% in 2026, down 2.2% in the previous five trading days and up 35.94% in the past year.

Currently, NextEra Energy, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 27.9. NextEra Energy, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $27.4 billion with a 24.9% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 20.7%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $4.012 per share for the current fiscal year. NextEra Energy, Inc. currently has a 2.7% dividend yield.

As of April 17, 2026, The Southern Company had a $106.5 billion market cap, putting it in the 97th percentile of all stocks. The Southern Company’s stock is up 8.4% in 2026, down 2.7% in the previous five trading days and up 3.83% in the past year.

Currently, The Southern Company’s price-earnings ratio is 24.1. The Southern Company’s trailing 12-month revenue is $29.6 billion with a 14.7% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 10.1%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $4.566 per share for the current fiscal year. The Southern Company currently has a 3.1% dividend yield.

How We Compare NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
NextEra Energy, Inc.	NEE	D
The Southern Company	SO	D

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

NextEra Energy, Inc. has a Value Score of 25, which is Expensive. The Southern Company has a Value Score of 40, which is Expensive.

The Value Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither NextEra Energy, Inc. or The Southern Company has a high enough value grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolio. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if NextEra Energy, Inc. or The Southern Company is the better investment when it comes to value.

NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
NextEra Energy, Inc.	NEE	B
The Southern Company	SO	A

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

NextEra Energy, Inc. has a Growth Score of 78, which is Strong. The Southern Company has a Growth Score of 95, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: The Southern Company

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, The Southern Company has a more attractive growth grade than NextEra Energy, Inc.. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, The Southern Company could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
NextEra Energy, Inc.	NEE	C
The Southern Company	SO	C

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

NextEra Energy, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 43, which is Neutral. The Southern Company has a Earnings Estimate Score of 58, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither NextEra Energy, Inc. or The Southern Company has an Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade that could be considered a “winner.” Investors considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if NextEra Energy, Inc. or The Southern Company is the better investment when it comes to estimate revisions.

Other NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company Grades

In addition to Estimate Revisions, Growth and Value, A+ Investor also provides grades for Momentum and Quality.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, NextEra Energy, Inc. or The Southern Company Stock?

Overall, NextEra Energy, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 25, Growth Score of 78 and Estimate Revisions Score of 43.

The Southern Company stock has a Value Score of 40, Growth Score of 95 and Estimate Revisions Score of 58.

Comparing NextEra Energy, Inc. and The Southern Company’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.