AWK vs. SO: American Water Works vs. Southern Company Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but AWK is classified in Water Utilities while SO is classified in Electric Utilities.

Company profile comparison for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Profile Item	AWK	SO
Name	American Water Works Company, Inc.	The Southern Company
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Water Utilities	Electric Utilities
GICS Sub-Industry	Water Utilities	Electric Utilities
Market Capitalization	29.92 billion USD	107.51 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	April 23, 2008	December 31, 1981
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AWK

GSPC

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
Total Return (1Y)	17.61%	6.21%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	9.05%	15.28%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	-0.39%	12.24%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AWK

GSPC

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	22.53%	17.95%
Beta (5Y)	0.54	0.30
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-37.10%	-23.28%
Avg. Volume (3M)	2.03M	6.19M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AWK and SO are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.59	0.11
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.95	0.16

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 9.95% and Southern Company (SO) at 11.90% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

AWK

Utilities industry group

9.95%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
AWK: 9.95%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

SO

Utilities industry group

11.90%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
SO: 11.90%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

American Water Works (AWK) at 21.26% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Southern Company (SO) at 16.00%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

AWK

Utilities industry group

21.26%

Max: 28.78%
AWK: 21.26%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

SO

Utilities industry group

16.00%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
SO: 16.00%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 43.18% and Southern Company (SO) at 36.92% convert sales into operating profit at a top-quartile rate, pointing to tighter cost discipline before financing and tax.

AWK

Utilities industry group

43.18%

Max: 53.83%
AWK: 43.18%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

SO

Utilities industry group

36.92%

Max: 53.83%
SO: 36.92%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
ROE (TTM)	9.95%	11.90%
ROA (TTM)	3.50%	3.36%
Net Margin (TTM)	21.26%	16.00%
Operating Margin (TTM)	43.18%	36.92%
Gross Margin (TTM)	61.86%	48.55%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 9.74% and Southern Company (SO) at 10.59% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 5.57% and Southern Company (SO) at -1.75% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
Revenue Growth (YoY)	9.74%	10.59%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	10.67%	0.31%
EPS Growth (YoY)	5.57%	-1.75%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	8.06%	6.34%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Southern Company (SO) at 0.84 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while American Water Works (AWK) at 0.39 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for AWK.

AWK

Utilities industry group

0.39

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
AWK: 0.39
Min: 0.29

SO

Utilities industry group

0.84

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
SO: 0.84
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 1.38 and Southern Company (SO) at 1.68 fund their balance sheets with roughly industry-typical debt-to-equity mixes.

AWK

Utilities industry group

1.38

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
AWK: 1.38
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

SO

Utilities industry group

1.68

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
SO: 1.68
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.39	0.84
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.38	1.68
Net Debt / EBITDA	5.49	5.01

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 2.26% and Southern Company (SO) at 3.21% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

AWK

Utilities industry group

2.26%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
AWK: 2.26%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

SO

Utilities industry group

3.21%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
SO: 3.21%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 59.60% and Southern Company (SO) at 68.49% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

AWK

Utilities industry group

59.60%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
AWK: 59.60%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

SO

Utilities industry group

68.49%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
SO: 68.49%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
Dividend Yield (TTM)	2.26%	3.21%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	59.60%	68.49%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Southern Company (SO) at 21.08 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while American Water Works (AWK) at 26.00 sits in the richer quartile — AWK needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

AWK

Utilities industry group

26.00

Max: 31.22
AWK: 26.00
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

SO

Utilities industry group

21.08

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
SO: 21.08
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Southern Company (SO) at 3.45 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while American Water Works (AWK) at 5.60 sits in the pricier quartile — AWK costs more per dollar of sales.

AWK

Utilities industry group

5.60

Max: 6.35
AWK: 5.60
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

SO

Utilities industry group

3.45

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
SO: 3.45
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both American Water Works (AWK) at 2.51 and Southern Company (SO) at 2.56 carry a premium to book value versus peers, sitting in the upper P/B ratio quartile of their industries.

AWK

Utilities industry group

2.51

Max: 3.12
AWK: 2.51
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

SO

Utilities industry group

2.56

Max: 3.12
SO: 2.56
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

American Water Works (AWK) vs. Southern Company (SO): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for American Water Works (AWK) and Southern Company (SO)
Metric	AWK	SO
P/E Ratio (TTM)	26.00	21.08
P/S Ratio (TTM)	5.60	3.45
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.51	2.56
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-5.45%	-4.73%