COMPARE · Data as of August 21, 2026
SO vs VST
Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. SO scored 55.9, VST scored 73.8 — VST leads.
Compare another set
Different reporting periods. VST's fundamentals are as of June 2026, but SO's are as of March 2026 — a 3-month gap. Growth, margin and valuation figures below therefore describe different windows and aren't strictly like-for-like.
SO
Southern Company (The)
55.9
$88.94 · $102.3B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
17.9
VST leads
VST
Vistra Corp.
73.8
$136.21 · $45.7B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
- Fastest growthVST+18.6%
- Strongest balance sheetSO1.82
- Highest qualityVST65 / 100
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
SO
stronger →← stronger
VST
57
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
65
72
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
88
42
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
70
VST is stronger on 3 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
SO
VST
-$3.5bF
FCF
$2.3bB
+8.3%B
Rev
+18.6%B+
1.82C+
D/E
3.73D
3.4xC+
P/S
—
2.35C
PEG
0.41A
—
P/E
23.0xC+
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
SO
VST
—
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
17% above
—
Growth the price implies10-yr FCF · lower = less priced in
~19%/yr
—
1-yr DCF upside
-34%
—
5-yr DCF upside
-14%
—
10-yr DCF upside
+25%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
SO
Why this score
- Durable high returns
- Diluting shareholders
VST
No notable signals flagged.
The companies
SOSouthern Company (The)
Why now
Utilities - Regulated Electric · market cap $102.3b. 12% off the 52-week high of $100.84. 19 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $100.45 (implying +13% upside).
Moat
Net margin 14% beats the market median by a meaningful margin — the company is keeping more of every revenue dollar than the average S&P constituent. ROE 11% meets the long-run market sustainable threshold — solid but not differentiated; the durability comes from elsewhere. $102.3b market cap gives the company enough scale to absorb fixed costs that subscale competitors can't, without yet being so large that growth has to come from acquisition.
Risk
Free cash flow is negative (-$3.5b) — capital raises or debt issuance likely required; dilution / leverage risk.
VSTVistra Corp.
Why now
Utilities - Independent Power Producers · market cap $45.7b. Down 38% from 52-week high of $219.82 — deep drawdown territory. Revenue growing +19%, comfortably above the S&P median. PEG 0.41 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 18 sell-side analysts rate this a Strong Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $219.72 (implying +61% upside).
Moat
ROE 40% — top-decile capital efficiency. Either pricing leverage, low capital intensity, or aggressive buybacks; the durability story depends on which. FCF converts 102% of net income — earnings translate cleanly into cash, a sign that working capital and capex are well-disciplined.
Risk
D/E 3.73 is elevated — limits strategic flexibility and raises refinancing exposure if rates stay higher for longer. Down 38% from the 52-week high — the market is pricing in something the screen can't see; verify the bear case before sizing up. Beta 1.43 implies above-market volatility — position-size to the drawdowns this name will produce in a market correction, not to its bull-case return.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where SO and VST diverge
On the headline score the gap is 17.9 points in favor of VST. The widest single difference is Value, where VST leads by 27.9 points.
- ValueSO 42.3 · VST 70.2VST +27.9
- GrowthSO 72.3 · VST 88.3VST +16.0
- QualitySO 57.1 · VST 64.8VST +7.7
Pillars run 0–100 against sector peers, so a score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.