ATLANTA, April 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern Company said today it is increasing its annual dividend by 7 cents per share to a rate of $2.10 per share.

The increase marks the 13th straight year that Southern Company has raised the dividend on its common stock.

Southern Company also announced today a regular quarterly dividend – including an increase of
1.75 cents per share on a quarterly basis – of 52.50 cents per share, payable June 6, 2014, to shareholders of record as of May 5, 2014. This marks 266 consecutive quarters – dating back to 1948 – that Southern Company will have paid a dividend to its shareholders.

"Southern Company is focused on providing clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy to customers," said Southern Company Chairman, President and CEO Thomas A. Fanning. "This, along with keeping customers at the center of all we do, has been the foundation of our success for more than a century."   

With 4.4 million customers and more than 43,000 megawatts of generating capacity, Atlanta-based Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is the premier energy company serving the Southeast through its subsidiaries. A leading U.S. producer of clean, safe, reliable and affordable electricity, Southern Company owns electric utilities in four states and a growing competitive generation company, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Southern Company brands are known for energy innovation, excellent customer service, high reliability and retail electric prices that are below the national average. Southern Company and its subsidiaries are leading the nation's nuclear renaissance through the construction of the first new nuclear units to be built in a generation of Americans and are demonstrating their commitment to energy innovation through the development of a state-of-the-art coal gasification plant. Southern Company has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Defense and G.I. Jobs magazine as a top military employer and listed by DiversityInc as a top company for Blacks. The company received the 2012 Edison Award from the Edison Electric Institute for its leadership in new nuclear development, was named Platts' 2011 Power Company of the Year and is continually ranked among the top utilities in Fortune's annual World's Most Admired Electric and Gas Utility rankings. Visit our website at www.southerncompany.com.

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SOURCE Southern Company