When it comes to dividends, achieving Dividend King status is pretty much the pinnacle of success for a company. There are a handful of publicly traded utilities that have the 50+ years of annual Dividend increases needed to qualify as a Dividend King. The Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is not one of them. Still, dividend-focused investors would be wise to dig a little deeper into the company's history before passing it by.

Southern's dividend yield today is a touch over 4%. That compares to the average utility yield, using Vanguard Utilities Index ETF (NYSEMKT: VPU) as a proxy, of about 3.5%. Of the utilities that are Dividend Kings, only two have higher yields. And both of those companies, Black Hills Corporation (NYSE: BKH) and Northwest Natural (NYSE: NWN), are much smaller companies. 

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Source Fool.com