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SO (Southern Co) Beneish M-Score : -2.69 (As of Oct. 31, 2024)


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What is Southern Co Beneish M-Score?

The zones of discrimination for M-Score is as such:

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.
An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Good Sign:

Beneish M-Score -2.69 no higher than -1.78, which implies that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.

The historical rank and industry rank for Southern Co's Beneish M-Score or its related term are showing as below:

SO' s Beneish M-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -2.87   Med: -2.69   Max: -1.73
Current: -2.69

During the past 13 years, the highest Beneish M-Score of Southern Co was -1.73. The lowest was -2.87. And the median was -2.69.


Southern Co Beneish M-Score Historical Data

The historical data trend for Southern Co's Beneish M-Score can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

* Premium members only.

Southern Co Beneish M-Score Chart

Southern Co Annual Data
Trend Dec14 Dec15 Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23
Beneish M-Score
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -2.87 -2.70 -2.68 -2.25 -2.69

Southern Co Quarterly Data
Sep19 Dec19 Mar20 Jun20 Sep20 Dec20 Mar21 Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24
Beneish M-Score Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only - - -2.69 - -

Competitive Comparison of Southern Co's Beneish M-Score

For the Utilities - Regulated Electric subindustry, Southern Co's Beneish M-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Beneish M-Score data, can be viewed below:

* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.


Southern Co's Beneish M-Score Distribution in the Utilities - Regulated Industry

For the Utilities - Regulated industry and Utilities sector, Southern Co's Beneish M-Score distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Southern Co's Beneish M-Score falls into.



Southern Co Beneish M-Score Calculation

The M-score was created by Professor Messod Beneish. Instead of measuring the bankruptcy risk (Altman Z-Score) or business trend (Piotroski F-Score), M-score can be used to detect the risk of earnings manipulation. This is the original research paper on M-score.

The M-Score Variables:

The M-score of Southern Co for today is based on a combination of the following eight different indices:

M=-4.84+0.92 * DSRI+0.528 * GMI+0.404 * AQI+0.892 * SGI+0.115 * DEPI
=-4.84+0.92 * 1.2365+0.528 * 0.8014+0.404 * 0.9398+0.892 * 0.8625+0.115 * 0.8649
-0.172 * SGAI+4.679 * TATA-0.327 * LVGI
-0.172 * 1+4.679 * -0.032599-0.327 * 1.0284
=-2.69

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

This Year (Dec23) TTM:Last Year (Dec22) TTM:
Total Receivables was $3,963 Mil.
Revenue was $25,253 Mil.
Gross Profit was $11,708 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $10,432 Mil.
Total Assets was $139,331 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $101,941 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $4,986 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $0 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $13,467 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $58,517 Mil.
Net Income was $3,976 Mil.
Gross Profit was $965 Mil.
Cash Flow from Operations was $7,553 Mil.
Total Receivables was $3,716 Mil.
Revenue was $29,279 Mil.
Gross Profit was $10,878 Mil.
Total Current Assets was $10,416 Mil.
Total Assets was $134,891 Mil.
Property, Plant and Equipment(Net PPE) was $96,703 Mil.
Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization(DDA) was $4,064 Mil.
Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) was $0 Mil.
Total Current Liabilities was $15,724 Mil.
Long-Term Debt & Capital Lease Obligation was $52,044 Mil.




1. DSRI = Days Sales in Receivables Index

Measured as the ratio of Revenue in Total Receivables in year t to year t-1.

A large increase in DSR could be indicative of revenue inflation.

DSRI=(Receivables_t / Revenue_t) / (Receivables_t-1 / Revenue_t-1)
=(3963 / 25253) / (3716 / 29279)
=0.156932 / 0.126917
=1.2365

2. GMI = Gross Margin Index

Measured as the ratio of gross margin in year t-1 to gross margin in year t.

Gross margin has deteriorated when this index is above 1. A firm with poorer prospects is more likely to manipulate earnings.

GMI=GrossMargin_t-1 / GrossMargin_t
=(GrossProfit_t-1 / Revenue_t-1) / (GrossProfit_t / Revenue_t)
=(10878 / 29279) / (11708 / 25253)
=0.371529 / 0.463628
=0.8014

3. AQI = Asset Quality Index

AQI is the ratio of asset quality in year t to year t-1.

Asset quality is measured as the ratio of non-current assets other than Property, Plant and Equipment to Total Assets.

AQI=(1 - (CurrentAssets_t + PPE_t) / TotalAssets_t) / (1 - (CurrentAssets_t-1 + PPE_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=(1 - (10432 + 101941) / 139331) / (1 - (10416 + 96703) / 134891)
=0.193482 / 0.205885
=0.9398

4. SGI = Sales Growth Index

Ratio of Revenue in year t to sales in year t-1.

Sales growth is not itself a measure of manipulation. However, growth companies are likely to find themselves under pressure to manipulate in order to keep up appearances.

SGI=Sales_t / Sales_t-1
=Revenue_t / Revenue_t-1
=25253 / 29279
=0.8625

5. DEPI = Depreciation Index

Measured as the ratio of the rate of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization in year t-1 to the corresponding rate in year t.

DEPI greater than 1 indicates that assets are being depreciated at a slower rate. This suggests that the firm might be revising useful asset life assumptions upwards, or adopting a new method that is income friendly.

DEPI=(Depreciation_t-1 / (Depreciaton_t-1 + PPE_t-1)) / (Depreciation_t / (Depreciaton_t + PPE_t))
=(4064 / (4064 + 96703)) / (4986 / (4986 + 101941))
=0.040331 / 0.04663
=0.8649

Note: If the Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization data is not available, we assume that the depreciation rate is constant and set the Depreciation Index to 1.

6. SGAI = Sales, General and Administrative expenses Index

The ratio of Selling, General, & Admin. Expense(SGA) to Sales in year t relative to year t-1.

SGA expenses index > 1 means that the company is becoming less efficient in generate sales.

SGAI=(SGA_t / Sales_t) / (SGA_t-1 /Sales_t-1)
=(0 / 25253) / (0 / 29279)
=0 / 0
=1

7. LVGI = Leverage Index

The ratio of total debt to Total Assets in year t relative to yeat t-1.

An LVGI > 1 indicates an increase in leverage

LVGI=((LTD_t + CurrentLiabilities_t) / TotalAssets_t) / ((LTD_t-1 + CurrentLiabilities_t-1) / TotalAssets_t-1)
=((58517 + 13467) / 139331) / ((52044 + 15724) / 134891)
=0.51664 / 0.502391
=1.0284

8. TATA = Total Accruals to Total Assets

Total accruals calculated as the change in working capital accounts other than cash less depreciation.

TATA=(IncomefromContinuingOperations_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(NetIncome_t - NonOperatingIncome_t - CashFlowsfromOperations_t) / TotalAssets_t
=(3976 - 965 - 7553) / 139331
=-0.032599

An M-Score of equal or less than -1.78 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator. An M-Score of greater than -1.78 signals that the company is likely to be a manipulator.

Southern Co has a M-score of -2.69 suggests that the company is unlikely to be a manipulator.


Southern Co Beneish M-Score Related Terms

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Southern Co Business Description

Address
30 Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard, Northwest, Atlanta, GA, USA, 30308
Southern is one of the largest utilities in the U.S. The company serves 9 million customers with vertically integrated electric utilities in three states and natural gas distribution utilities in four states. It owns 50 gigawatts of rate-regulated generating capacity, primarily for serving customers in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. Subsidiary Southern Power owns 13 gigawatts of natural gas generation and renewable energy across the U.S. and sells the electricity primarily under long-term contracts.
Executives
Bryan D Anderson officer: EVP & Pres. External Affairs 30 IVAN ALLEN JR. BLVD. NW, ATLANTA GA 30308
Spainhour Sterling A Jr. officer: EVP, Chief Legal Officer & CCO 4370 PEACHTREE ROAD, NE, ATLANTA GA 30319
Anthony L Wilson officer: President, Mississippi Power 30 IVAN ALLEN JR. BLVD, ATLANTA GA 30308
Sloane N Drake officer: EVP, CHRO 30 IVAN ALLEN JR BLVD NW, ATLANTA GA 30308
Kimberly S, Greene officer: President & CEO, SCS 30 IVAN ALLEN JR. BLVD., NW, ATLANTA GA 30308
Christopher Cummiskey officer: EVP & CCCS Officer 241 RALPH MCGILL BLVD., ATLANTA GA 30308
Stephen E Kuczynski officer: Pres. & CEO, Southern Nuclear 30 IVAN ALLEN JR. BLVD, NW, ATLANTA GA 30308
David P. Poroch officer: Comptroller 241 RALPH MCGILL BLVD., ATLANTA GA 30308
Shantella E. Cooper director 241 RALPH MCGILL BLVD., NW, ATLANTA GA 30308
Martin Bernard Davis officer: EVP and CIO 520 GERVAIS STREET, C/O SOUTH STATE CORP, COLUMBIA SC 29201
Thomas A Fanning officer: CFO
Lizanne Thomas director 1420 PEACHTREE STREET NE, SUITE 800, ATLANTA GA 30309
David E Meador director ONE ENERGY PLAZA, DETROIT MI 48226
James Jeffrey Peoples officer: Chairman, President & CEO, APC 600 NORTH 18TH STREET, BIRMINGHAM AL 35203
Kerr, Ii James Y officer: Executive VP & General Counsel 30 IVAN ALLEN JR. BLVD., NW, ATLANTA GA 30308