「我们对本季的财务业绩感到满意,这展示了我们全国平台和地方水务业务实力相结合的优势,」sjw group主席、首席执行官和总裁Eric W. Thornburg表示。「我们继续通过在我们足迹范围内的水供应和制造行业投资2,5200万美元,或超过我们2024年资本预算的四分之三,来实施增长策略。我们还与加利福尼亚公用事业委员会提交了一份反映与公共倡导办公室在我们加利福尼亚普遍费率案件中几乎所有问题上达成解决的和解协议,并在缅因提交了水制造行业收费申请,以及在德克萨斯提交了第二个系统改善费用申请。」
Through the first nine months of 2024, SJW Group invested $252 million in infrastructure and water supply. The company has a capital expenditures budget of $332 million in 2024 and plans to invest more than $1.6 billion in capital over the next five years to build and maintain its water and wastewater operations, including approximately $230 million to install treatment for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), subject to regulatory approvals and availability of funding.
San Jose Water's installation of a $100 million advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) project continued in the third quarter. The project was approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in 2022 and is separate from the GRC capital budget approved by the CPUC. The bulk of the AMI installation is expected to be between 2024 and 2026 with approximately $27 million to be expended in 2024.
2
Rate Activity and Regulatory Updates
California
On August 19, 2024, San Jose Water and the Public Advocates Office filed a settlement agreement with the CPUC on all but two policy issues in our 2025 through 2027 GRC application.
The settlement agreement enables San Jose Water to invest $450 million over the next three years in drinking water infrastructure and provides for a total revenue increase of $53.1 million over current authorized revenues over three years. The step increases in authorized revenue would be 3.91% in 2025, 2.55% in 2026, and 2.98% in 2027. In addition to the capital expenditure plan and revenue increase, the settlement agreement provides for greater revenue recovery through the service charge and further aligns authorized to actual usage through a lower sales forecast. The two policy items to be fully litigated are related to chemical and waste disposal costs in the full cost balancing account and adjusting the service charge calculation.
A decision on the settlement agreement and the two litigated items is expected in the fourth quarter of 2024, and new rates are anticipated to be effective on January 1, 2025.
Connecticut
On September 18, 2024, the Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority authorized a $4.3 million, or 3.43%, increase in annualized revenues for $41.9 million in projects completed through the Water Infrastructure and Conservation Adjustment (WICA) infrastructure recovery mechanism. The WICA surcharge increase was effective on October 1, 2024.
Maine
On October 25, 2024, Maine Water filed a GRC application for the Camden-Rockland Division with the Maine Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) requesting an increase in annual revenues of approximately $1.1 million, or 15.9%, over current authorized revenues. A decision is expected in the second quarter of 2025.
In the third quarter, the MPUC authorized an increase of $52,000 in annualized revenue for completed water main replacement projects in two of Maine Water's divisions through the Water Infrastructure Charge (WISC) infrastructure recovery mechanism. Maine Water also filed a WISC application in a third division requesting $46,000 in annualized revenue. A decision is expected in the fourth quarter of 2024.
Maine Water intends to file a petition with the MPUC before the end of this year regarding consolidation of tariffs in the company's ten rate districts. Such a move would streamline GRC and WISC filings that are currently done on a district-by-district basis. The company typically files two to four GRC and WISC filings each year. This will improve administrative efficiency, reduce regulatory lag, and ease the burden on regulatory agencies and their staffs.
Texas
On September 12, 2024, Texas Water filed an application with the Public Utilities Commission of Texas to increase the annual revenue from its System Infrastructure Charge (SIC) surcharges by $4.3 million. The SIC application covers $39.4 million in completed water and $1.8 million in completed wastewater projects. A decision is targeted in the first half of 2025.
Force for Good
In October 2024, SJW Group was recognized by Newsweek as one of America's Greenest Companies 2025, one of only two water utilities to make the list. The award highlights U.S. companies committed to reducing their environmental impact in key areas like greenhouse gas emissions, water management and waste reduction. According to Newsweek, only companies that meet the European Union's stringent sustainability criteria —considered the most advanced globally — were eligible for consideration.
In September 2024, Connecticut Water was recognized by the Hartford Courant as a top regional workplace for the fourth consecutive year. The recognition is based on an anonymous survey of company employees by an independent third party on topics such as culture, career development, and purpose and values.
3
2024 Guidance
The following table includes a reconciliation of the company's 2024 diluted EPS guidance (GAAP) to adjusted diluted EPS guidance (non-GAAP):
2024 Earnings Guidance
Estimated Diluted EPS Guidance on a GAAP Basis
$
2.65
to
2.75
Adjustments:
Loss on sale of real estate investments, net of tax
0.02
0.02
Expense for merger and acquisition activities
0.01
0.01
Adjusted EPS Guidance (non-GAAP)
$
2.68
to
2.78
In addition, we reiterate our non-linear long-term diluted EPS growth of 5% to 7%, anchored off of 2022's diluted EPS of $2.43.
Our guidance is subject to risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, those factors outlined in the Forward-Looking Statements of this release and the Risk Factors section of the company’s annual and quarterly reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Dividend
On October 25, 2024, the directors of SJW Group declared a quarterly cash dividend on common stock of $0.40 per share, payable on December 2, 2024, to shareholders of record at the close of business on November 4, 2024. Dividends have been paid on SJW Group’s and its predecessor’s common stock for more than 80 consecutive years. For 56 consecutive years, our stockholders have received an increase in their calendar year dividend, which places us in an exclusive group of companies.
Stock Market Listing
SJW Group intends to transfer its listing from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) to the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq) on November 7, 2024, after market close. SJW Group expects to commence trading as a Nasdaq-listed company upon market open on November 8, 2024, and will continue trading under the ticker symbol “SJW". The transfer to Nasdaq provides SJW Group increased investor and ESG support services and certain cost savings.
Financial Results Call Information
Eric W. Thornburg, president, chief executive officer, and board chair, and Andrew F. Walters, chief financial officer, treasurer, and interim principal accounting officer, will review results for the third quarter of 2024 in a live webcast presentation at 11 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time, or 2 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, on Monday, October 28, 2024.
Interested parties may access the webcast and related presentation materials at the website www.sjwgroup.com. An archive of the webcast will be available until January 20, 2025.
4
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
SJW Group's net income and diluted EPS are prepared in accordance with GAAP and represent the earnings as reported to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Adjusted net income and Adjusted diluted EPS are non-GAAP financial measures representing GAAP earnings adjusted to exclude the effects of non-utility real estate transactions and costs associated with mergers and acquisition activities, if any. These non-GAAP financial measures are provided as additional information for investors to evaluate the performance of SJW Group's business activities excluding these items. Management also believes these non-GAAP financial measures help investors and analysts better understand our actual results compared to our guidance on a non-GAAP basis. SJW Group uses adjusted net income and/or adjusted diluted EPS as the primary performance measurements when communicating with analysts and investors regarding our outlook and results. Adjusted net income and Adjusted diluted EPS are also used internally to measure performance. However, these non-GAAP financial measures may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies, even when the same or similarly titled terms are used to identify such measures, limiting their usefulness for comparative purposes. Further, these non-GAAP financial measures should be considered as a supplement to the financial information prepared on a GAAP basis rather than an alternative to the respective GAAP financial measures.
About SJW Group
SJW Group is among the largest investor-owned pure-play water and wastewater utilities in the United States, providing life-sustaining and high-quality water service to nearly 1.6 million people. SJW Group’s locally led and operated water utilities - San Jose Water Company in California, The Connecticut Water Company in Connecticut, The Maine Water Company in Maine, and SJWTX, Inc. (dba The Texas Water Company) in Texas - possess the financial strength, operational expertise, and technological innovation to safeguard the environment, deliver outstanding service to customers, and provide opportunities to employees. SJW Group remains focused on investing in its operations, remaining actively engaged in its local communities, and delivering continued sustainable value to its stockholders. For more information about SJW Group, please visit www.sjwgroup.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Some of these forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “believes,” “expects,” “estimates,” “anticipates,” “intends,” “seeks,” “plans,” “projects,” “may,” “should,” “will,” or the negative of those words or other comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and are subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions that are difficult to predict.
These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions including, but not limited to, the following factors: (1) the effect of water, utility, environmental and other governmental policies and regulations, including regulatory actions concerning rates, authorized return on equity, authorized capital structures, capital expenditures, PFAS and other decisions; (2) changes in demand for water and other services; (3) unanticipated weather conditions and changes in seasonality including those affecting water supply and customer usage; (4) the effect of the impact of climate change; (5) unexpected costs, charges or expenses; (6) our ability to successfully evaluate investments in new business and growth initiatives; (7) contamination of our water supplies and damage or failure of our water equipment and infrastructure; (8) the risk of work stoppages, strikes and other labor-related actions; (9) catastrophic events such as fires, earthquakes, explosions, floods, ice storms, tornadoes, hurricanes, terrorist acts, physical attacks, cyber-attacks, epidemic, or similar occurrences; (10) changes in general economic, political, business and financial market conditions; (11) the ability to obtain financing on favorable terms, which can be affected by various factors, including credit ratings, changes in interest rates, compliance with regulatory requirements, compliance with the terms and conditions of our outstanding indebtedness, and general market and economic conditions; and (12) legislative, and general market and economic developments. The risks, uncertainties and other factors may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of SJW Group to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
5
Results for a quarter are not indicative of results for a full year due to seasonality and other factors. In addition, actual results, performance or achievements are subject to other risks and uncertainties that relate more broadly to our overall business, including those more fully described in our filings with the SEC, including our most recent reports on Form 10-K, Form 10-Q and Form 8-K. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and speak only as of the date made, and SJW Group undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law.
SJW Group Contacts:
Andrew F. Walters
Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer and Interim Principal Accounting Officer
408.279.7818
Andrew.Walters@sjwater.com
Daniel J. Meaney, APR
Director of Investor Relations
860.664.6016
Daniel.Meaney@ctwater.com
6
SJW Group
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income
(Unaudited)
(in thousands, except share and per share data)
Three months ended September 30,
Nine months ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Operating revenue
$
225,063
204,843
$
550,619
499,025
Operating expense:
Production Expenses:
Purchased water
54,310
46,044
118,631
101,054
Power
3,396
2,785
8,560
7,363
Groundwater extraction charges
25,081
21,398
54,759
46,751
Other production expenses
12,919
12,415
36,020
36,379
Total production expenses
95,706
82,642
217,970
191,547
Administrative and general
25,708
23,888
71,964
71,759
Maintenance
8,512
6,457
23,080
18,813
Property taxes and other non-income taxes
9,361
8,795
26,610
25,092
Depreciation and amortization
27,423
26,455
84,159
78,872
Total operating expense
166,710
148,237
423,783
386,083
Operating income
58,353
56,606
126,836
112,942
Other (expense) income:
Interest on long-term debt and other interest expense
(17,516)
(16,744)
(53,394)
(48,913)
Pension non-service credit (cost)
940
(740)
2,829
(906)
Other, net
(1,197)
1,661
2,659
7,042
Income before income taxes
40,580
40,783
78,930
70,165
Provision for income taxes
1,928
4,561
7,883
4,127
Net income
38,652
36,222
71,047
66,038
Other comprehensive income (loss), net
—
318
(442)
420
Comprehensive income
$
38,652
36,540
$
70,605
66,458
Earnings per share
Basic
$
1.17
1.14
$
2.19
2.10
Diluted
$
1.17
1.13
$
2.18
2.09
Dividends per share
$
0.40
0.38
$
1.20
1.14
Weighted average shares outstanding
Basic
32,896,967
31,862,518
32,458,666
31,436,077
Diluted
32,982,580
31,934,636
32,530,954
31,526,732
7
SJW Group
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(Unaudited)
(in thousands, except share and per share data)
September 30, 2024
December 31, 2023
Assets
Utility plant:
Land
$
44,646
41,415
Depreciable plant and equipment
4,141,490
3,967,911
Construction work in progress
203,040
106,980
Intangible assets
64,372
35,946
Total utility plant
4,453,548
4,152,252
Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization
1,047,631
981,598
Net utility plant
3,405,917
3,170,654
Nonutility properties and real estate investments
1,352
13,350
Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization
97
194
Net nonutility properties and real estate investments
1,255
13,156
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
3,967
9,723
Accounts receivable:
Customers, net of allowances for uncollectible accounts of $848 and $6,551 on September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively
75,849
67,870
Income tax
11,262
5,187
Other
6,286
3,684
Accrued unbilled utility revenue
68,342
49,543
Assets held for sale
—
40,850
Prepaid expenses
15,411
11,110
Current regulatory assets
828
4,276
Other current assets
5,331
6,146
Total current assets
187,276
198,389
Other assets:
Regulatory assets, less current portion
253,162
235,910
Investments
18,213
16,411
Postretirement benefit plans
39,387
33,794
Other intangible asset
—
28,386
Goodwill
640,311
640,311
Other
6,781
8,056
Total other assets
957,854
962,868
Total assets
$
4,552,302
4,345,067
8
SJW Group
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(Unaudited)
(in thousands, except share and per share data)
September 30, 2024
December 31, 2023
Capitalization and liabilities
Capitalization:
Stockholders’ equity:
Common stock, $0.001 par value; authorized 70,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding shares 33,226,735 on September 30, 2024 and 32,023,004 on December 31, 2023
$
33
32
Additional paid-in capital
804,848
736,191
Retained earnings
527,575
495,383
Accumulated other comprehensive income
1,349
1,791
Total stockholders’ equity
1,333,805
1,233,397
Long-term debt, less current portion
1,673,715
1,526,699
Total capitalization
3,007,520
2,760,096
Current liabilities:
Lines of credit
93,235
171,500
Current portion of long-term debt
8,088
48,975
Accrued groundwater extraction charges, purchased water and power
38,433
24,479
Accounts payable
44,480
46,121
Accrued interest
19,549
15,816
Accrued payroll
12,180
12,229
Current regulatory liabilities
1,770
3,059
Other current liabilities
26,314
20,795
Total current liabilities
244,049
342,974
Deferred income taxes
268,370
238,528
Advances for construction
150,546
146,582
Contributions in aid of construction
336,559
326,451
Postretirement benefit plans
48,158
46,836
Regulatory liabilities, less current portion
473,899
461,108
Other noncurrent liabilities
23,201
22,492
Commitments and contingencies
Total capitalization and liabilities
$
4,552,302
4,345,067
9
SJW Group
Reconciliation of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
(Unaudited)
(in thousands, except per share data)
2024 Earnings Guidance
Estimated Diluted EPS Guidance on a GAAP Basis
$
2.65
to
2.75
Adjustments:
Loss on sale of real estate investments, net of tax
0.02
0.02
Expense for merger and acquisition activities
0.01
0.01
Adjusted EPS Guidance (non-GAAP)
$
2.68
to
$
2.78
Three months ended September 30,
Nine months ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Reported GAAP Net Income
$
38,652
36,222
$
71,047
66,038
Adjustments:
Loss (gain) on sale of real estate investments1
60
—
969
(1,473)
Expense for merger and acquisition activities2
361
—
361
—
Tax effect of above adjustments3
(120)
—
(411)
412
Adjusted Net Income (non-GAAP)
$
38,953
36,222
$
71,966
64,977
Reported GAAP Diluted Earnings Per Share
$
1.17
1.13
$
2.18
2.09
Adjustments:
Loss (gain) on sale of real estate investments, net of tax
—
—
0.02
(0.03)
Expense for merger and acquisition activities, net of tax
0.01
—
0.01
—
Adjusted Diluted Earnings Per Share (non-GAAP)
$
1.18
1.13
$
2.21
2.06
1 Included in the "Other, net" line on the condensed consolidated statements of comprehensive income.
2 Included in the "Administrative and general" line on the condensed consolidated statements of comprehensive income.
3 The tax effect on all adjustments is calculated at the applicable statutory rate.