SO vs DUK vs ETR Stock Comparison

Southern, Duke Energy and Entergy 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
2 wins
DUK Duke Energy CORP
$124.97 +9.4% 1M -1.8% 1Y
Market cap
$96.91B
P/E
19.1x
Revenue (TTM)
$33.17B
Div. yield
0.03%
Regulated Electric Utilities Utilities
7 wins
ETR Entergy Corp /De/
$107.34 +8.2% 1M +12.2% 1Y
Market cap
$49.33B
P/E
27.4x
Revenue (TTM)
$13.48B
Div. yield
0.02%
Regulated Electric Utilities Utilities
3 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Duke Energy leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Duke Energy 7, Entergy 3, Southern 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionSODUKETRLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $105.25B $96.91B $49.33B SO
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 22.6x 19.1x 27.4x DUK
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 19.2x 19.1x 23.4x DUK
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +6.4% +7.2% +9.5% ETR
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 15.4% 15.3% 13.3% SO
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 5.1% 5.4% 4.7% DUK
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 5.3x 5.2x 5.4x DUK
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.03% 0.03% 0.02% DUK
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -3.4% -1.8% +12.2% ETR
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +8.1%/yr +3.8%/yr +15.5%/yr ETR
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 17.9% 16.6% 20.5% DUK
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 43/100 56/100 38/100 DUK

Percentile Scorecard

SODUKETR

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

AxisSODUKETR
Valuation 33 #45 of 67 70 #21 of 67 12 #59 of 67
Growth 55 #30 of 65 75 #17 of 65 36 #42 of 65
Profitability 75 #17 of 65 80 #14 of 65 59 #27 of 65
Financial Health 37 #42 of 66 35 #43 of 66 46 #36 of 66
Shareholder Returns 15 #57 of 67 23 #52 of 67 36 #43 of 67
Overall 43 56 38
  • SO ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities
  • DUK ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities
  • ETR ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodSODUKETRSPY
1 month +11.3%+9.4%+8.2% -1.0%
3 months -4.5%-4.3%-7.4% +2.9%
6 months -0.6%-1.8%-5.5% +6.4%
Year to date +6.5%+6.6%+16.1% +11.4%
1 year -3.4%-1.8%+12.2% +13.1%
3 years +39.8%+42.4%+132.3% +79.4%
3 years, per year +11.8%+12.5%+32.5% +21.5%
5 years +47.6%+20.4%+105.2% +67.7%
5 years, per year +8.1%+3.8%+15.5% +10.9%
10 years +83.8%+60.2%+189.5% +255.2%
10 years, per year +6.3%+4.8%+11.2% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureSODUKETRSPY
Volatility, 1Y 17.9%16.6%20.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 17.5%17.0%21.0% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.23-0.310.17 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.19-0.110.59 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -23.3%-26.0%-29.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -6.3%-6.4%-9.0% -2.5%
52-week high $99.11$133.46$117.91 $779.14
52-week low $82.35$113.24$91.19 $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.

MultipleSODUKETR
P/E now vs peer median 22.7xmedian 20.8x 19.1xmedian 20.8x 27.4xmedian 20.8x
P/S now vs peer median 3.5xmedian 2.8x 2.9xmedian 2.8x 3.7xmedian 2.8x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 13.1xmedian 13.1x 11.0xmedian 13.1x 14.2xmedian 13.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median -32.7xmedian 36.7x -29.5xmedian 36.7x -16.8xmedian 36.7x
P/B now vs peer median 2.5xmedian 1.7x 1.7xmedian 1.7x 2.7xmedian 1.7x
PEG now vs peer median 0.71median 2.27 0.68median 2.27 4.49median 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 monthsSODUKETR
Revenue $30.18B $33.17B $13.48B
Gross profit $25.14B $24.71B –
Operating income $7.31B $9.01B $3.09B
Net income $4.66B $5.24B $1.82B
Free cash flow -$3.27B -$3.30B -$2.97B
EPS (diluted) $4.08 $6.53 $3.85
Cash & equivalents $2.98B $2.14B $3.85B
Total debt $295.00B $352.76B $34.63B
Shares (diluted) 1.14B 779.00M 466.31M
Enterprise value $96.30B $93.49B $38.46B

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
MetricSODUKETR
P/E 22.7x 19.1x 27.4x
P/FCF -32.7x -29.5x -16.8x
P/Operating cash flow 10.0x 8.3x 8.2x
P/S 3.5x 2.9x 3.7x
P/B 2.5x 1.7x 2.7x
P/Tangible book 2.5x 1.7x 2.7x
EV/EBITDA 13.1x 11.0x 14.2x
EV/EBIT 24.6x 20.6x 26.2x
EV/Revenue 5.9x 5.6x 6.0x
EV/FCF -54.9x -56.2x -27.2x
EV/Operating cash flow 16.8x 15.9x 13.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.71 0.68 4.49

Growth

14 metrics
MetricSODUKETR
Revenue growth (1Y) 6.4% 7.2% 9.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 3.0% 4.5% 0.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 5.3% 12.9% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 1.6% 8.0% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 1.5% 8.5% -7.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 14.7% 12.2% 5.6%
Net income growth (1Y) 8.7% 7.7% 2.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 16.2% 29.1% 10.2%
EPS growth (1Y) 5.6% 8.6% -2.4%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 31.9% 28.1% 6.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 15.5% -3.0% 28.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 23.7% 27.6% 19.1%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -152.2% -1,646% -29.7%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -3.1% 19.6% -39.7%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricSODUKETR
Gross margin 83.3% 74.5% –
EBITDA margin 45.2% 51.0% 42.2%
Operating margin 24.2% 27.2% 22.9%
Pretax margin 17.4% 18.1% 17.0%
Net margin 15.4% 15.3% 13.3%
FCF margin -10.8% -9.9% -22.1%
Operating cash flow margin 35.3% 35.2% 45.1%
Return on equity 9.2% 9.6% 10.2%
Return on assets 2.9% 2.7% 2.3%
Return on invested capital 5.1% 5.4% 4.7%
Return on capital employed 5.1% 5.1% 4.5%
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.2x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.3x 2.2x 3.3x
Stock comp / revenue – – –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricSODUKETR
Debt / assets 46.6% 45.6% 43.8%
Debt / equity 1.8x 1.6x 1.9x
Net debt / EBITDA 5.3x 5.2x 5.4x
Debt / FCF -23.1x -27.4x -11.6x
Liabilities / assets 73.9% 71.5% 76.8%
Equity / assets 26.1% 28.5% 23.2%
Interest coverage 2.3x 2.4x 2.0x
Current ratio 0.8x 0.7x 0.9x
Quick ratio 0.4x 0.3x 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.2x 0.1x 0.4x
Altman Z-score – 0.73 1.01

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricSODUKETR
Dividend yield 3.2% 3.4% 2.4%
Net buyback yield – – -2.7%
Shareholder yield 3.2% 3.4% -0.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) 66.6% 63.7% 62.9%
Payout ratio (FCF) -94.8% -101.3% -38.4%
Dividend growth (1Y) 4.7% 4.1% 12.5%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 1.2% 1.5% 9.0%

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.

ConsensusSODUKETR
Forward P/E 19.2xFY2026 19.1xFY2026 23.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $4.84FY2026 $6.56FY2026 $4.58FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +12.6%FY2026 +4.0%FY2026 +17.1%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after -2.9% +15.4% +14.2%
Revenue, next fiscal year $31.53BFY2026 $32.40BFY2026 $13.47BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +6.7%FY2026 +0.5%FY2026 +4.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +8.8% +4.1% +8.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersSODUKETR
Held by institutions 72.5% 69.7% 97.8%
Institutions holding 2,363 2,457 1,330
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.7% +0.5% +6.1%
Institutions buying 1,248 1,297 694
Institutions selling 724 801 411
Buyers to sellers 1.72 1.62 1.69

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.

SODUKETR
SO 1.00 0.86 0.66
DUK 0.86 1.00 0.64
ETR 0.66 0.64 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, SO, DUK and ETR?

Southern (SO) is the largest by market capitalisation: Southern (SO) $105.25B, Duke Energy (DUK) $96.91B, Entergy (ETR) $49.33B.

Which stock is cheaper, SO, DUK and ETR?

Duke Energy (DUK) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Southern (SO) 22.6x, Duke Energy (DUK) 19.1x, Entergy (ETR) 27.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Duke Energy (DUK) is cheapest (Southern (SO) 19.2x, Duke Energy (DUK) 19.1x, Entergy (ETR) 23.4x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Entergy (ETR) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Southern (SO) +6.4%, Duke Energy (DUK) +7.2%, Entergy (ETR) +9.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Southern (SO) has the highest net margin (Southern (SO) 15.4%, Duke Energy (DUK) 15.3%, Entergy (ETR) 13.3%). On return on invested capital, Duke Energy (DUK) leads (Southern (SO) 5.1%, Duke Energy (DUK) 5.4%, Entergy (ETR) 4.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Entergy (ETR) returned the most: Southern (SO) -3.4%, Duke Energy (DUK) -1.8%, Entergy (ETR) +12.2%. Over five years, Entergy (ETR) compounded fastest (Southern (SO) +8.1%/yr, Duke Energy (DUK) +3.8%/yr, Entergy (ETR) +15.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Duke Energy (DUK) has the highest dividend yield: Southern (SO) 0.03%, Duke Energy (DUK) 0.03%, Entergy (ETR) 0.02%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Duke Energy (DUK) has been the steadiest (Southern (SO) 17.9%, Duke Energy (DUK) 16.6%, Entergy (ETR) 20.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, SO, DUK and ETR?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Duke Energy (DUK) leads on 7. 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.