ATLANTA, April 17, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern
Company said today it is increasing its dividend by 8 cents per share on an annualized basis to a
rate of $2.32 per share.
The increase marks the 16th straight year that Southern Company
has raised the dividend on its common stock.
Southern Company also announced today a regular quarterly
dividend – including the increase of 2
cents per share over the prior quarter – of 58 cents per share, payable June 6, 2017, to shareholders of record as of
May 15, 2017. This marks 278 consecutive quarters – dating back to
1948 – that Southern Company will have paid a dividend to its
shareholders that is equal to or greater than the previous
quarter.
"Our dividend and overall shareholder value proposition are
supported by an outstanding portfolio of state-regulated electric
and gas utilities," said Southern Company Chairman, President and
CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "Today's
action by our board of directors reinforces the strength and
sustainability of our business over the long term."
About Southern Company
Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is
America's premier energy company, with 46,000 megawatts of
generating capacity and 1,500 billion cubic feet of combined
natural gas consumption and throughput volume serving 9 million
electric and gas utility customers through its subsidiaries. The
company provides clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy
through electric utilities in four states, natural gas distribution
utilities in seven states, a competitive generation company serving
wholesale customers across America and a nationally recognized
provider of customized energy solutions, as well as fiber optics
and wireless communications. Southern Company brands are known for
excellent customer service, high reliability and affordable prices
that are below the national average. Through an industry-leading
commitment to innovation, Southern Company and its subsidiaries are
inventing America's energy future by developing the full portfolio
of energy resources, including carbon-free nuclear, 21st
century coal, natural gas, renewables and energy efficiency, and
creating new products and services for the benefit of
customers. Southern Company has been named by the U.S.
Department of Defense and G.I. Jobs
magazine as a top military employer, recognized among the Top 50
Companies for Diversity by DiversityInc, listed by Black Enterprise
magazine as one of the 40 Best Companies for Diversity and
designated a Top Employer for Hispanics by Hispanic Network. The
company has earned a National Award of Nuclear Science and History
from the National Atomic Museum Foundation for its leadership and
commitment to nuclear development and is continually ranked among
the top utilities in Fortune's annual World's Most
Admired Electric and Gas Utility rankings. Visit our website at
www.southerncompany.com.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking
Information
Certain information contained in this release is
forward-looking information based on current expectations and plans
that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking information
includes, among other things, statements concerning shareholder
value and business performance. Southern Company cautions
that there are certain factors that could cause actual results to
differ materially from the forward-looking information that has
been provided. The reader is cautioned not to put undue reliance on
this forward-looking information, which is not a guarantee of
future performance and is subject to a number of uncertainties and
other factors, many of which are outside the control of Southern
Company; accordingly, there can be no assurance that such suggested
results will be realized. The following factors, in addition to
those discussed in Southern Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K
for the fiscal year ended December 31,
2016, and subsequent securities filings, could cause actual
results to differ materially from management expectations as
suggested by such forward-looking information: the impact of recent
and future federal and state regulatory changes, including
environmental laws regulating emissions, discharges, and disposal
to air, water, and land, and also changes in tax and other laws and
regulations to which Southern Company and its subsidiaries are
subject, including potential tax reform legislation, as well as
changes in application of existing laws and regulations; current
and future litigation, regulatory investigations, proceedings, or
inquiries; the effects, extent, and timing of the entry of
additional competition in the markets in which Southern Company's
subsidiaries operate; variations in demand for electricity and
natural gas, including those relating to weather, the general
economy and recovery from the last recession, population and
business growth (and declines), the effects of energy conservation
and efficiency measures, including from the development and
deployment of alternative energy sources such as self-generation
and distributed generation technologies, and any potential economic
impacts resulting from federal fiscal decisions; available sources
and costs of natural gas and other fuels; limits on pipeline
capacity; effects of inflation; the ability to control costs and
avoid cost overruns during the development, construction, and
operation of facilities, which include the development and
construction of generating facilities with designs that have not
been finalized or previously constructed, including changes in
labor costs and productivity, adverse weather conditions, shortages
and inconsistent quality of equipment, materials, and labor,
sustaining nitrogen supply, contractor or supplier delay,
non-performance under construction, operating, or other agreements,
operational readiness, including specialized operator training and
required site safety programs, unforeseen engineering or design
problems, start-up activities (including major equipment failure
and system integration), and/or operational performance (including
additional costs to satisfy any operational parameters ultimately
adopted by any Public Service Commission ("PSC")); the ability to
construct facilities in accordance with the requirements of permits
and licenses, to satisfy any environmental performance standards
and the requirements of tax credits and other incentives, and to
integrate facilities into the Southern Company system upon
completion of construction; investment performance of the Southern
Company system's employee and retiree benefit plans and nuclear
decommissioning trust funds; advances in technology; ongoing
renewable energy partnerships and development agreements; state and
federal rate regulations and the impact of pending and future rate
cases and negotiations, including rate actions relating to fuel and
other cost recovery mechanisms; legal proceedings and regulatory
approvals and actions related to Plant Vogtle Units 3 and 4,
including Georgia PSC approvals and Nuclear Regulatory Commission
actions; actions related to cost recovery for the integrated coal
gasification combined cycle facility under construction by
Mississippi Power Company in Kemper
County, Mississippi (the "Kemper IGCC"), including the
ultimate impact of the 2015 decision of the Mississippi Supreme
Court, the Mississippi PSC's December
2015 rate order, and related legal or regulatory
proceedings, Mississippi PSC review of the prudence of Kemper IGCC
costs and approval of further permanent rate recovery plans,
actions relating to proposed securitization, satisfaction of
requirements to utilize grants, and the ultimate impact of the
termination of the proposed sale of an interest in the Kemper IGCC
to South Mississippi Electric Power Association (now known as
Cooperative Energy); the ability to successfully operate the
electric utilities' generating, transmission, and distribution
facilities and Southern Company Gas' natural gas distribution and
storage facilities and the successful performance of necessary
corporate functions; the inherent risks involved in operating and
constructing nuclear generating facilities, including
environmental, health, regulatory, natural disaster, terrorism, and
financial risks; the inherent risks involved in transporting and
storing natural gas; the performance of projects undertaken by the
non-utility businesses and the success of efforts to invest in and
develop new opportunities; internal restructuring or other
restructuring options that may be pursued; potential business
strategies, including acquisitions or dispositions of assets or
businesses, which cannot be assured to be completed or beneficial
to Southern Company or its subsidiaries; the possibility that the
anticipated benefits from the acquisition of Southern Company Gas
cannot be fully realized or may take longer to realize than
expected, the possibility that costs related to the integration of
Southern Company and Southern Company Gas will be greater than
expected, the ability to retain and hire key personnel and maintain
relationships with customers, suppliers, or other business
partners, and the diversion of management time on
integration-related issues; the ability of counterparties of
Southern Company and its subsidiaries to make payments as and when
due and to perform as required; the ability to obtain new short-
and long-term contracts with wholesale customers; the direct or
indirect effect on the Southern Company system's business resulting
from cyber intrusion or terrorist incidents and the threat of
terrorist incidents; interest rate fluctuations and financial
market conditions and the results of financing efforts; changes in
Southern Company's and any of its subsidiaries' credit ratings,
including impacts on interest rates, access to capital markets, and
collateral requirements; the impacts of any sovereign financial
issues, including impacts on interest rates, access to capital
markets, impacts on foreign currency exchange rates, counterparty
performance, and the economy in general, as well as potential
impacts on the benefits of the U.S. Department of Energy loan
guarantees; the ability of Southern Company's electric utilities to
obtain additional generating capacity (or sell excess generating
capacity) at competitive prices; catastrophic events such as fires,
earthquakes, explosions, floods, tornadoes, hurricanes and other
storms, droughts, pandemic health events such as influenzas, or
other similar occurrences; the direct or indirect effects on the
Southern Company system's business resulting from incidents
affecting the U.S. electric grid, natural gas pipeline
infrastructure, or operation of generating or storage resources;
and the effect of accounting pronouncements issued periodically by
standard-setting bodies. Southern Company expressly disclaims
any obligation to update any forward-looking information.
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SOURCE Southern Company