AQN vs SO Stock Comparison

Algonquin Power & Utilities and Southern Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
SO Southern Co
$92.89 +11.3% 1M -3.4% 1Y
Market cap
$105.25B
P/E
22.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$30.18B
Div. yield
0.03%
Regulated Electric Utilities Utilities
9 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Southern leads on 9 of the 12 questions below (Southern 9, Algonquin Power & Utilities 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionAQNSOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $4.12B $105.25B SO
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 29.6x 22.6x SO
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 15.9x 19.2x AQN
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +5.7% +6.4% SO
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 11.5% 15.4% SO
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 3.4% 5.1% SO
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 7.0x 5.3x SO
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.07% 0.03% AQN
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -6.9% -3.4% SO
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -18.6%/yr +8.1%/yr SO
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 25.7% 17.9% SO
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 58/100 43/100 AQN

Percentile Scorecard

AQNSO

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisAQNSO
Valuation 79 #15 of 67 33 #45 of 67
Growth 69 #21 of 65 55 #30 of 65
Profitability 66 #23 of 65 75 #17 of 65
Financial Health 39 #41 of 66 37 #42 of 66
Shareholder Returns 38 #42 of 67 15 #57 of 67
Overall 58 43
  • AQN ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities
  • SO ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodAQNSOSPY
1 month +6.5%+11.3% -1.0%
3 months -11.3%-4.5% +2.9%
6 months -14.8%-0.6% +6.4%
Year to date -12.2%+6.5% +11.4%
1 year -6.9%-3.4% +13.1%
3 years +6.9%+39.8% +79.4%
3 years, per year +2.3%+11.8% +21.5%
5 years -64.3%+47.6% +67.7%
5 years, per year -18.6%+8.1% +10.9%
10 years -39.5%+83.8% +255.2%
10 years, per year -4.9%+6.3% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureAQNSOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 25.7%17.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 28.3%17.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.23-0.23 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.27-0.19 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -73.3%-23.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -22.6%-6.3% -2.5%
52-week high $6.98$99.11 $779.14
52-week low $4.99$82.35 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleAQNSO
P/E now vs peer median 29.8xmedian 20.8x 22.7xmedian 20.8x
P/S now vs peer median 3.4xmedian 2.8x 3.5xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 11.4xmedian 13.1x 13.1xmedian 13.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median 26.0xmedian 36.7x -32.7xmedian 36.7x
P/B now vs peer median 0.8xmedian 1.7x 2.5xmedian 1.7x
PEG now vs peer median 0.85median 2.27 0.71median 2.27

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsAQNSO
Revenue $1.21B $30.18B
Gross profit -$435.80M $25.14B
Operating income $525.40M $7.31B
Net income $167.50M $4.66B
Free cash flow $159.40M -$3.27B
EPS (diluted) $0.18 $4.08
Cash & equivalents $55.00M $2.98B
Total debt $6.64B $295.00B
Shares (diluted) 772.41M 1.14B
Enterprise value $3.92B $96.30B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricAQNSO
P/E 29.8x 22.7x
P/FCF 26.0x -32.7x
P/Operating cash flow 4.0x 10.0x
P/S 3.4x 3.5x
P/B 0.8x 2.5x
P/Tangible book 0.8x 2.5x
EV/EBITDA 11.4x 13.1x
EV/EBIT 20.4x 24.6x
EV/Revenue 8.9x 5.9x
EV/FCF 67.3x -54.9x
EV/Operating cash flow 10.5x 16.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.85 0.71

Growth

14 metrics
MetricAQNSO
Revenue growth (1Y) 5.7% 6.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -5.3% 3.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 5.7% 5.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 6.1% 1.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) 14.0% 1.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -5.8% 14.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 112.7% 8.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 52.3% 16.2%
EPS growth (1Y) 153.3% 5.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 35.1% 31.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 6.7% 15.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 11.6% 23.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -45.1% -152.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 28.6% -3.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricAQNSO
Gross margin -36.1% 83.3%
EBITDA margin 77.8% 45.2%
Operating margin 43.6% 24.2%
Pretax margin 16.2% 17.4%
Net margin 11.5% 15.4%
FCF margin 13.2% -10.8%
Operating cash flow margin 85.2% 35.3%
Return on equity 1.5% 9.2%
Return on assets – 2.9%
Return on invested capital 3.4% 5.1%
Return on capital employed – 5.1%
Asset turnover – 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 6.1x 2.3x
Stock comp / revenue 1.0% –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricAQNSO
Debt / assets 47.7% 46.6%
Debt / equity 1.3x 1.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 7.0x 5.3x
Debt / FCF 41.6x -23.1x
Liabilities / assets 64.3% 73.9%
Equity / assets 35.7% 26.1%
Interest coverage 1.9x 2.3x
Current ratio 0.9x 0.8x
Quick ratio 0.4x 0.4x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 0.18 –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricAQNSO
Dividend yield 5.2% 3.2%
Net buyback yield -0.2% –
Shareholder yield 5.0% 3.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) 180.2% 66.6%
Payout ratio (FCF) 189.3% -94.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) -30.8% 4.7%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) -17.9% 1.2%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusAQNSO
Forward P/E 15.9xFY2026 19.2xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.34FY2026 $4.84FY2026
EPS growth, next FY 0.0%FY2026 +12.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +17.6% -2.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.45BFY2026 $31.53BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +0.9%FY2026 +6.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +14.7% +8.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersAQNSO
Held by institutions 68.7% 72.5%
Institutions holding 241 2,363
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.1% +5.7%
Institutions buying 129 1,248
Institutions selling 67 724
Buyers to sellers 1.93 1.72

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

AQNSO
AQN 1.00 0.33
SO 0.33 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, AQN and SO?

Southern (SO) is the largest by market capitalisation: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) $4.12B, Southern (SO) $105.25B.

Which stock is cheaper, AQN and SO?

Southern (SO) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 29.6x, Southern (SO) 22.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) is cheapest (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 15.9x, Southern (SO) 19.2x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Southern (SO) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) +5.7%, Southern (SO) +6.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Southern (SO) has the highest net margin (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 11.5%, Southern (SO) 15.4%). On return on invested capital, Southern (SO) leads (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 3.4%, Southern (SO) 5.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Southern (SO) returned the most: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) -6.9%, Southern (SO) -3.4%. Over five years, Southern (SO) compounded fastest (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) -18.6%/yr, Southern (SO) +8.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) has the highest dividend yield: Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 0.07%, Southern (SO) 0.03%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Southern (SO) has been the steadiest (Algonquin Power & Utilities (AQN) 25.7%, Southern (SO) 17.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do AQN and SO move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.33, a weak relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, AQN and SO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Southern (SO) leads on 9. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.