News

Evergy, Inc. EVRG reported fourth-quarter 2023 operating earnings per share (EPS) of 27 cents, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents by 10%. Earnings decreased 10% year over year.

In 2023, EPS was $3.54 compared with $3.71 in the year-ago period. The year-over-year decline in EPS was due to higher interest expense, unfavorable weather, offset marginally by lower operations and maintenance expense, and higher corporate-owned life insurance proceeds.

Total Revenues

In 2023, revenues were down nearly 6% year over year to $5.5 billion.

Evergy Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Highlights of the Release

Full-year 2023 fuel and purchased power expenses and SPP network transmission costs were down 17.9% and 6.3% year over year, respectively.

Interest expenses in 2023 were $525.8 million, up 30.1% year over year.

Financial Update

Cash and cash equivalents as of Dec 31, 2023, were $27.7 million compared with $25.2 million as of Dec 31, 2022.

Long-term debt as of Dec 31, 2023, was $11.05 billion compared with $9.9 billion as of Dec 31, 2022.

Cash provided by operating activities in 2023 was $1.98 billion compared with $1.8 billion in 2022.

Guidance

Evergy expects its 2024 operating EPS in the range of $3.73-$3.93. The mid-point of the guidance is on par with the Zacks Consensus Estimate, which is pegged at $3.83.

The company reaffirmed its EPS annual growth target of 4-6% from 2023 through 2026. Long-term capital investment is expected to be $12.5 billion in the 2024-2028 time period.

Zacks Rank

Currently, Evergy has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Recent Releases

NextEra Energy, Inc. NEE reported fourth-quarter 2023 adjusted EPS of 52 cents, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 49 cents by 6.1%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NEE’s 2024 EPS is pinned at $3.44, implying an improvement of 8.5% from the year-ago levels. The company’s long-term (three-to-five years) earnings growth rate is 8.18%.

Exelon Corporation’s EXC fourth-quarter 2023 EPS of 60 cents surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 58 cents by 3.4%. EPS increased 39.5% from the year-ago level of 43 cents.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EXC’s 2024 EPS is pinned at $2.42, implying an improvement of 1.3% from the prior-year actuals. The company’s long-term earnings growth rate is 5.69%.

Dominion Energy Inc. D delivered fourth-quarter 2023 operating EPS of 29 cents, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 40 cents by 27.5%. Quarterly EPS was lower than the company’s guidance of 35 cents. Operating EPS was $1.06 in the year-ago quarter.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for D’s 2024 EPS is pinned at $3.06, implying an improvement of 53.8% from the year-earlier levels. The company’s long-term earnings growth rate is 7.9%.

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