Southern Company today reported second-quarter 2020 earnings of $612 million, or 58 cents per share, compared with $899 million, or 86 cents per share, in the second quarter of 2019.  For the six months ended June 30, 2020, Southern Company reported earnings of $1.48 billion, or $1.40 per share, compared with earnings of $2.98 billion, or $2.86 per share, for the same period in 2019. 

Excluding the items described in the "Net Income – Excluding Items" table below, Southern Company earned $822 million, or 78 cents per share, during the second quarter of 2020, compared with $833 million, or 80 cents per share, during the second quarter of 2019.  For the six months ended June 30, 2020, excluding these items, Southern Company earned $1.65 billion, or $1.56 per share, compared with $1.56 billion, or $1.50 per share, for the same period in 2019.

NOTE: For more information regarding these non-GAAP adjustments, see the footnotes accompanying the Financial Highlights page of the earnings package.

Earnings drivers year-over-year for the second quarter 2020 were negatively impacted by a decline in sales from demand reduction related to the COVID-19 pandemic and mild weather, largely offset by diligent cost control and constructive state regulatory actions completed in 2019 at the company's utilities.

"Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, Southern Company and its subsidiaries have never taken a day off," said Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "Our electric and gas utilities have continued to provide clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy to customers while operating under appropriate health and safety protocols," added Fanning. "Whether it's our response to major storms in the Southeast or working within our communities to promote racial justice, we continue to deliver results, including continued progress on new nuclear construction."

Second-quarter 2020 operating revenues were $4.62 billion, compared with $5.10 billion for the second quarter of 2019, a decrease of 9.4 percent. For the six months ended June 30, 2020, operating revenues were $9.64 billion, compared with $10.51 billion for the corresponding period in 2019, a decrease of 8.3 percent.  These decreases were primarily due to lower fuel costs, milder weather and a sales decline from COVID-19 demand reduction.

Southern Company's second-quarter earnings slides with supplemental financial information are available at http://investor.southerncompany.com.

Southern Company's financial analyst call will begin at 1 p.m. Eastern Time today, during which Fanning and Chief Financial Officer Andrew W. Evans will discuss earnings and provide a general business update. Investors, media and the public may listen to a live webcast of the call and view associated slides at http://investor.southerncompany.com/webcasts. A replay of the webcast will be available on the site for 12 months.