Southern Company reported second-quarter 2019 earnings of $899 million, or 86 cents per share, compared with a loss of $154 million, or 15 cents per share, in the second quarter of 2018.  For the six months ended June 30, 2019, Southern Company reported earnings of $2.98 billion, or $2.86 per share, compared with earnings of $784 million, or 77 cents per share, for the same period in 2018.

Excluding the items described in the "Net Income – Excluding Items" table below, Southern Company earned $833 million, or 80 cents per share, during the second quarter of 2019, compared with $815 million, or 80 cents per share, during the second quarter of 2018. For the six months ended June 30, 2019, excluding these items, Southern Company earned $1.56 billion, or $1.50 per share, compared with earnings of $1.71 billion, or $1.69 per share, for the same period in 2018.

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 2019 were positively influenced by higher revenues associated with changes in rates and pricing, net of usage changes, as well as warmer than normal weather at Southern Company's regulated utilities. These impacts were partially offset by the impact of divested entities on earnings.

"We are very pleased with our financial and operational performance in the first half of 2019, as our premier, state-regulated electric and gas franchise operations continued to perform well in the second quarter," said Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "In particular, our electrical system has proved to be very resilient in what has so far been a hot summer in the Southeast."

Second quarter 2019 operating revenues were $5.10 billion, compared with $5.63 billion for the second quarter of 2018, a decrease of 9.4 percent. For the six months ended June 30, 2019, operating revenues were $10.51 billion, compared with $12.00 billion for the corresponding period in 2018, a decrease of 12.4 percent. These decreases were primarily related to a reduction in revenue resulting from the sale of Gulf Power and other assets that are no longer affiliated with Southern Company.