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Compare Stocks › PFE vs SO

Pfizer, Inc. (PFE) vs Southern Company (The) (SO): Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

As of 2026-08-03, PFE is undervalued at $25, with a DCF intrinsic value of $127985960274 and a margin of safety of 100%. SO is overvalued at $95, with an intrinsic value of $15 and a margin of safety of -526%. Of the two, PFE has the wider margin of safety.

PFE
Pfizer, Inc.
$25.01
VS
SO
Southern Company (The)
$94.54

Rewards

PFE
  • ★Gross margin of 74.8% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
  • ★Trailing P/E of 19.1x is 37% below the historical average of 30.4x — potentially undervalued relative to its own history.
SO
  • ★Each dollar of retained earnings has created $2.41 of earning power — management is an exceptional capital allocator.

Risks

PFE
  • ⚠ROIC has declined by 15.9 percentage points over the past 4 years, which may signal competitive erosion.
  • ⚠PEG ratio of 2.94 indicates the stock is expensive relative to its expected growth — the market may be pricing in more growth than analysts project.
  • ⚠Altman Z-Score of 1.38 places the company in the distress zone — financial patterns resemble those of companies that experienced bankruptcy.
SO
  • ⚠Southern Company (The) scores only 26/100 on the Economic Moat Score, suggesting limited durable competitive advantages.
  • ⚠PEG ratio of 2.41 indicates the stock is expensive relative to its expected growth — the market may be pricing in more growth than analysts project.
  • ⚠High leverage (1.75x net debt/equity) combined with thin interest coverage (-1.0x) poses financial risk.

Key Valuation Metrics

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PFE
SO
Valuation
$12.38B
Free Cash Flow
$-3.91B
N/A
FCF Yield
-3.60%
19.09
Trailing P/E
22.78
8.85
Forward P/E
19.22
Quality & Moat
10.19%
ROIC
5.91%
8.31%
ROE
11.48%
74.80%
Gross Margin
48.29%
2.94
PEG Ratio
2.41
Balance Sheet Safety
0.57
Net Debt / Equity
1.75
N/A
Interest Coverage
N/A
2.03
Net Debt / EBITDA
5.20
6.88%
Dividend Yield
3.22%
PFE: 8Ties: 1SO: 2
PFESO

Historical Fundamentals

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PFE

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

SO

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation. The dashed forward point is the forward P/E — today's price ÷ analyst consensus EPS.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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PFE
N/A
Net losses over 3 years — test not applicable
Company had negative cumulative retained earnings
Σ Retained
$-10.61B
Δ Market Cap
$-26.34
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer
SO
$5.15
created per $1 retained over 3 years
Exceptional Value Creator
Σ Retained
$3.71B
Δ Market Cap
+$19.12B
Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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PFE
100.0% Margin of Safety
Price is 100.0% below estimated fair value
Current Price: $25.01
Fair Value: $127985960274.09
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued
SO
526.4% Overvalued
Price is 526.4% above estimated fair value
Current Price: $94.54
Fair Value: $15.09
Strongly undervalued
Undervalued
Fairly valued
Overvalued
Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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PFE

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $25?

-14.2%
Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth
Standard FCF implies -15.0%

The market implies -14.2% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding -15.0%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

SO

Requires positive FCF to compute implied growth rate.

Economic Moat Score

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PFE
35/100
No Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

No durable moat detected, though reinvestment efficiency shows some competitive positioning. The business lacks consistent evidence of sustainable advantages.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 5 years of fundamental data.
SO
26/100
No Moat
70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

No durable moat detected, though margin stability shows some competitive positioning. The business lacks consistent evidence of sustainable advantages.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 5 years of fundamental data.

Forensic Accounting

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PFE
-2.53
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.
SO
-2.65
Unlikely Manipulator
Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

Ownership Breakdown

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PFE
Insiders 0.1%Institutions 69.5%Retail & Other 30.4%
No. of Institutional Holders3,661
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.
SO
Insiders 0.1%Institutions 71.1%Retail & Other 28.8%
No. of Institutional Holders2,839
High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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PFE
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
BLAYLOCK RONALD E
Director
$499,072
@ $25.65 · 2025-02-13
GOTTLIEB SCOTT
Director
$28,240
@ $28.24 · 2024-10-30
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises
SO
0
Buys (3M)
0
Buys (12M)
No open market insider purchases found.
Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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PFE
1
Sells (3M)
1
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $51,400
DAMICO JENNIFER B.
Officer
$51,400
@ $25.70 · 2026-06-09
DAMICO JENNIFER B.
Officer
$64,825
@ $25.93 · 2025-03-04
DAMICO JENNIFER B.
Officer
$147,714
@ $28.66 · 2024-08-13
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives
SO
2
Sells (3M)
9
Sells (12M)
Total value (12M): $5.60M
KIM MATTHEW M.
Officer
$9,577
@ $95.77 · 2026-07-01
KIM MATTHEW M.
Officer
$9,116
@ $91.16 · 2026-06-01
KIM MATTHEW M.
Officer
$9,657
@ $96.57 · 2026-05-01
GREENE KIMBERLY S
Officer
$2.42M
@ $96.67 · 2026-03-30
CUMMISKEY CHRISTOPHER
Officer
$643,892
@ $96.55 · 2026-03-19
CONNALLY STANLEY W JR
Chief Operating Officer
$1.21M
@ $97.13 · 2026-03-18
KIM MATTHEW M.
Officer
$487,453
@ $95.15 · 2026-02-24
ANDERSON BRYAN D
Officer
$582,309
@ $93.83 · 2025-09-30
SPAINHOUR STERLING A. JR.
Officer
$226,148
@ $95.02 · 2025-08-11
GREENE KIMBERLY S
Officer
$1.25M
@ $95.00 · 2025-07-21
CUMMISKEY CHRISTOPHER
Officer
$1.10M
@ $89.54 · 2025-05-23
CONNALLY STANLEY W JR
Chief Operating Officer
$1.15M
@ $92.24 · 2025-03-31
GREENE KIMBERLY S
Chief Executive Officer
$3.00M
@ $93.12 · 2025-03-10
DAVIS MARTIN BERNARD
Chief Technology Officer
$100,811
@ $89.61 · 2025-03-03
WOMACK CHRISTOPHER C.
Chief Executive Officer
$2.20M
@ $90.13 · 2025-03-03
WOMACK CHRISTOPHER C.
Chief Executive Officer
$143,370
@ $90.00 · 2025-02-25
CUMMISKEY CHRISTOPHER
Officer
$81,184
@ $86.00 · 2025-02-19
PEOPLES JAMES JEFFREY
Chief Executive Officer
$1.25M
@ $86.00 · 2025-02-11
CUMMISKEY CHRISTOPHER
Officer
$69,739
@ $83.32 · 2025-02-04
DAVIS MARTIN BERNARD
Chief Technology Officer
$100,503
@ $85.90 · 2024-12-05
WOMACK CHRISTOPHER C.
Chief Executive Officer
$1.21M
@ $86.18 · 2024-12-05
SPAINHOUR STERLING A. JR.
Officer
$70,212
@ $88.54 · 2024-11-04
KERR JAMES Y. II
Chief Executive Officer
$2.69M
@ $89.64 · 2024-10-04
ANDERSON BRYAN D
Officer
$587,830
@ $89.54 · 2024-09-06
SPAINHOUR STERLING A. JR.
Officer
$211,796
@ $88.99 · 2024-08-05
Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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PFE
FearGreed
😐Neutral(52/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.
SO
FearGreed
😐Neutral(57/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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PFE
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (52)
SO
⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (57)
View PFE Full AnalysisView SO Full Analysis

Frequently Asked Questions: PFE vs SO

Is Pfizer, Inc. or Southern Company (The) more undervalued in 2026?▼

Based on our discounted cash flow model, PFE trades at a 100.0% margin of safety (intrinsic value $127985960274 vs. price $25), compared to SO's -526.4% margin of safety (intrinsic $15 vs. $95).

Which stock has a wider economic moat, Pfizer, Inc. or Southern Company (The)?▼

PFE scores 35/100 (None moat), while SO scores 26/100 (None moat). The moat score measures competitive advantage durability across ROIC consistency, margin stability, revenue predictability, and reinvestment efficiency.

Is Southern Company (The) in financial distress?▼

SO's Altman Z-Score of 0.9 places it in the Distress zone, signaling elevated bankruptcy risk. PFE scores 1.4 (Distress zone). The Altman Z-Score is a five-factor model that predicts insolvency within two years; scores below 1.81 indicate significant distress.

Which stock has higher return on invested capital, Pfizer, Inc. or Southern Company (The)?▼

PFE earns 10.2% ROIC versus SO's 5.9%. A higher ROIC means the company generates more profit per dollar of capital employed, a hallmark of durable competitive advantage in Buffett-style analysis.

Which dividend is safer, Pfizer, Inc.'s or Southern Company (The)'s?▼

SO's dividend earns a safety score of 63/100 (Safe), compared to PFE's 24/100 (Unsafe). SO has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.