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8-K - UIL FORM 8-K DATED FEBRUARY 22, 2011 - UIL HOLDINGS CORPuil_form8kdated2222011.htm
EX-99.1 - UIL EXHIBIT 99.1 - PRESENTATION - UIL HOLDINGS CORPuil_exh99-1.htm

EXHIBIT 99

UIL Holdings Corporation
157 Church Street
P.O. Box 1564
New Haven, CT  06506-0901
203.499.2812 Fax:  203.499.3626
 
UIL Press Release Logo
NEWS RELEASE
February 22, 2011
Analyst Contact:
Susan Allen
203-499-2409
 
Media Contact:
Michael West Jr.
203-499-3858
 
 
UIL Holdings Corporation Reports 2010 Financial Results and Provides 2011 Earnings Guidance

UIL Holdings Corporation (NYSE: UIL) today reported consolidated net income of $54.9 million, or $1.53 per basic share, an increase in net income of $0.6 million, and a decrease of $0.41 per basic share, compared to 2009.  Excluding the impact of the gas distribution acquisition and transition related activities, earnings for 2010 were $61.3 million, or $2.04 per share, an increase of 5% on an earnings per share basis when compared to the same period in 2009.
 
For the fourth quarter of 2010, earnings were $12.4 million, or $0.25 per basic share, compared to net income of $6.7 million, or $0.22 per basic share, for the same period in 2009.  Excluding the impact of the gas distribution acquisition and transition related activities, earnings for the fourth quarter of 2010 were $10.4 million, or $0.35 per share, an increase of 58% on an earnings per share basis when compared to the same period in 2009.

“UIL had a remarkable year in 2010 – we closed on the acquisition of three gas companies within six months of announcement, launched a new and innovative transmission venture and GenConn Energy’s Devon plant was completed and became operational,” commented James P. Torgerson, UIL’s President and CEO.  “In addition, GenConn Energy’s second plant, located in Middletown, Connecticut, is currently on schedule to be operational by June 2011.”

“Importantly 2011 will be a transition year.  Therefore, we will continue to focus on controlling operational costs and executing on our capital expenditure plan at each of our regulated subsidiaries,” added Torgerson.  “The integration of all of our operating companies is underway with an emphasis on process integration initiatives and best practices. The implementation of these initiatives is expected to continue through this year with most being completed before 2012.”

 - more -

 
 

 

The following table provides earnings per share on both a pre-acquisition and post-acquisition basis for the fourth quarter and full year of 2010, compared to the same periods in 2009.
 
   
Quarter Ended December 31,
   
Full Year Ended December 31,
 
   
2010
     
2009
     
Difference
   
2010
     
2009
     
Difference
 
                                             
EPS
                                           
UIL excl. acquisition & transition related activities
  $ 0.35       $ 0.22       $ 0.13     $ 2.04       $ 1.94       $ 0.10  
Gas distribution
  $ 0.26       $ -       $ 0.26     $ 0.36       $ -       $ 0.36  
Acquisition & transition related expenses
  $ (0.16 )     $ -       $ (0.16 )   $ (0.46 )     $ -       $ (0.46 )
Interest expense related to $450M debt issuance
  $ (0.06 )     $ -       $ (0.06 )   $ (0.08 )     $ -       $ (0.08 )
September 2010 equity issuance
  $ (0.14 )     $ -       $ (0.14 )   $ (0.33 )     $ -       $ (0.33 )
                                                         
UIL Consolidated
  $ 0.25  
 
  $ 0.22  
 
  $ 0.03     $ 1.53  
 
  $ 1.94  
 
  $ (0.41 )
 
Electric distribution, CTA & other

Earnings from the electric distribution business in 2010 were $35.5 million, or $0.99 per basic share, compared to $31.7 million, or $1.13 per basic share, for the same period in 2009.  For the fourth quarter of 2010, earnings from the electric distribution business were $3.7 million, or $0.07 per basic share, compared to $1.4 million, or $0.04 per basic share in the fourth quarter of 2009.  The increase in earnings for both the quarter and full year 2010 was primarily due to increased operating income from revenues from the approved rate increase effective January 1, 2010, partially offset by lower CTA rate base.  Earnings from UI’s equity investment in GenConn were $1.2 million in 2010.

Electric transmission

Earnings from the electric transmission business in 2010 were $28.3 million, or $0.79 per basic share, compared to $25.3 million, or $0.90 per basic share, for the same period in 2009.  For the fourth quarter of 2010, earnings from the electric transmission business were $7.3 million, or $0.15 per basic share, compared to $6.1 million, or $0.21 per basic share in the fourth quarter of 2009. The favorable earnings for both the quarter and full year of 2010 were primarily due to an increase in the allowance for funds used during construction, as well as a higher rate base.

Gas distribution

Earnings from the newly acquired gas distribution businesses for the period November 17, 2010 through December 31, 2010 were $12.9 million, or $0.36 per basic share.

Corporate

UIL Holdings retains certain costs, primarily interest expense, at the holding company, or “corporate” levels, which are not allocated to the various subsidiaries.  UIL Corporate incurred net after-tax costs of $2.5 million, or $0.07 per basic share in 2010, compared to net after-tax costs of $2.7 million, or $0.09 per basic share, in the same period of 2009.  For the fourth quarter of 2010, Corporate incurred after-tax costs of $0.6 million, or $0.01 per basic share, compared to net after-tax costs of $0.8 million or $0.03 per basic share in the fourth quarter of 2009.


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Looking Forward

 
UIL's consolidated earnings estimate for 2011 is $1.75 - $1.95 per share. Details of the 2011 earnings estimates are summarized as follows:
 
2011 Earnings Expectations
 
             
   
Approximate Net Income(2)
   
EPS - basic(3)
 
             
Electric distribution, CTA & other
  $ 39 - $46     $ 0.78 - $0.90  
Electric transmission
  $ 28 - $30     $ 0.55 - $0.60  
                 
Total UI (1)
  $ 68 - $73     $ 1.35 - $1.45  
                 
Gas distribution
  $ 35 - $40     $ 0.70 - $0.80  
                 
UIL Corporate
  $ (15) - ($14 )   $ (0.30) - ($0.28 )
                 
Total UIL (1)
  $ 88 - $98     $ 1.75 - $1.95  
                 
(1)    Expectations are not intended to be additive
               
(2)    Rounded to the nearest million
               
(3)    Assumes approximately 50.6 million average shares outstanding
               
 
UIL’s objective is for its regulated businesses to earn the allowed return on an aggregate basis. Major factors impacting the earnings per share estimates for 2011 are as follows:

·  
Earnings take into account a full year of the gas distribution earnings, which are expected to contribute $0.70 - $0.80 per share.

·  
In 2011, UIL will incur costs from the transition services agreement with Iberdrola USA, while also incurring costs involved in the permanent transition of these services to UIL.

·  
The full realization of saving half of the $23 million Iberdrola USA 2009 charges to the gas companies is not expected until 2012.  The savings opportunities have been identified and we project to fully achieve those savings in 2012.

·  
The earnings expectations for 2011 also include the impact of 100% bonus depreciation for tax purposes on qualified property.  The deferred taxes generated by bonus depreciation reduced the electric and gas rate bases, along with GenConn’s rate base.

·  
UI’s investment in GenConn’s peaking generation project in Middletown, Connecticut is scheduled to be in commercial operation by June 2011.  With the GenConn Devon plant in operation for the full year 2011, the two GenConn units are expected to contribute $0.12 - $0.14 per share in 2011.

·  
CTA earnings are expected to decline by $0.07 - $0.09 per share in 2011 compared to 2010, as rate base continues to be amortized.

 - more -

 
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Fourth Quarter and Year-end 2010 Earnings Conference Call

In conjunction with this earnings release, UIL will conduct a webcast conference call with financial analysts on Wednesday, February 23, 2011, beginning at 10:00 a.m. eastern time.  UIL’s executive management will present an overview of the financial results followed by a question and answer session.  Interested parties, including analysts, investors and the media, may listen live via the internet by logging onto the Investors section of UIL’s website at http://www.uil.com. Institutional investors can access the call via Thomson Street Events (www.streetevents.com), a password-protected event management site.

Headquartered in New Haven, Connecticut, UIL Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UIL) is a diversified energy delivery company serving a total of 690,000 electric and natural gas utility customers in 66 communities across two states, with combined total assets of over $4 billion.

UIL is the parent company for The United Illuminating Company (UI), Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation (CNG), The Southern Connecticut Gas Company (SCG), and The Berkshire Gas Company (BGC), each more than 100 years old. UI provides for the transmission and delivery of electricity and other energy related services for Connecticut’s Greater New Haven and Bridgeport areas. SCG and CNG are natural gas distribution companies that serve customers in Connecticut, while Berkshire Gas serves natural gas customers in western Massachusetts. UIL employs more than 1,850 people in the New England region. For more information on UIL Holdings, visit http://www.uil.com.

Use of Non-GAAP Measures

 
UIL Holdings believes that a breakdown, presented on a net income and per share basis, of how the acquisition-related financial activities described above contributed to the change in net income is useful in understanding the overall change in the consolidated results of operations for UIL Holdings from one reporting period to another. UIL Holdings presents such per share amounts by taking the dollar amount of the applicable change for the acquisition activity, booked in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), and applying UIL Holdings' combined effective statutory federal and state tax rate and then dividing by the average number of shares of UIL Holdings common stock outstanding for the periods presented. Any such amounts provided are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended to be used to calculate "Pro-forma" amounts.
 

UIL Holdings also believes earnings per share (EPS) information as presented in its earnings guidance is useful in understanding the earnings expectations for the business, as a whole.  The amounts presented in the earnings guidance show the EPS for each of UIL Holdings’ lines of business.  EPS is calculated by dividing the projected 2011 net income for each line of business by the projected average number of shares of UIL Holdings common stock outstanding for 2011.   Total consolidated EPS is a GAAP-basis presentation.

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Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained herein, regarding matters that are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements (as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). These include statements regarding management’s intentions, plans, beliefs, expectations or forecasts for the future. Such forward-looking statements are based on UIL Holdings’ expectations and involve risks and uncertainties; consequently, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, general economic conditions, legislative and regulatory changes, changes in demand for electricity, gas and other products and services, unanticipated weather conditions, changes in accounting principles, policies or guidelines, and other economic, competitive, governmental, and technological factors affecting the operations, markets, products and services of UIL Holdings’ subsidiaries, The United Illuminating Company, The Southern Connecticut Gas Company, Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation and The Berkshire Gas Company. Such risks and uncertainties with respect to UIL Holdings’ recent acquisition of The Southern Connecticut Gas Company, Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation and The Berkshire Gas Company include, but are not limited to, the possibility that the expected benefits will not be realized, or will not be realized within the expected time period. The foregoing and other factors are discussed and should be reviewed in UIL Holdings’ most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and other subsequent periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Forward-looking statements included herein speak only as of the date hereof and UIL Holdings undertakes no obligation to revise or update such statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events or circumstances.

The following are summaries of UIL Holdings’ unaudited consolidated financial information for the fourth quarter and full years of 2010 and 2009:

###

 
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UIL HOLDINGS CORPORATION
 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF INCOME
 
(In Thousands except per share amounts)
 
(Unaudited)
 
   
Years Ended
 
     December 31,  
   
2010
   
2009
 
             
Operating Revenues
           
  Electric distribution and transmission
  $ 859,547     $ 895,681  
  Gas distribution
    138,105       -  
  Non-utility
    14       869  
       Total Operating Revenues
    997,666       896,550  
Operating Expenses
               
  Operation
               
     Purchased power
    242,268       333,339  
     Natural gas purchased
    81,428       -  
     Operation and maintenance
    258,282       225,853  
     Transmission wholesale
    72,169       57,012  
  Depreciation and amortization
    113,946       98,116  
  Taxes - other than income taxes
    78,702       60,062  
  Acquisition and closing related expenses
    25,572       -  
       Total Operating Expenses
    872,367       774,382  
Operating Income
    125,299       122,168  
                 
Other Income and (Deductions), net
    17,262       5,586  
                 
Interest Charges, net
               
  Interest on long-term debt
    50,357       37,297  
  Other interest, net
    1,553       1,286  
      51,910       38,583  
  Amortization of debt expense and redemption premiums
    1,788       1,817  
       Total Interest Charges, net
    53,698       40,400  
                 
                 
Income Before Income Taxes, Equity Earnings
    88,863       87,354  
                 
Income Taxes
    35,284       33,096  
                 
Income Before Equity Earnings
    53,579       54,258  
Income (Loss) from Equity Investments
    1,278       59  
                 
Net Income
    54,857       54,317  
Less:
               
Preferred Stock Dividends of
               
       Subsidiary, Noncontrolling Interests
    3       -  
                 
Net Income attributable to UIL Holdings
  $ 54,854     $ 54,317  
                 
Average Number of Common Shares Outstanding - Basic
    35,722       28,027  
Average Number of Common Shares Outstanding - Diluted
    36,083       28,273  
                 
Earnings Per Share of Common Stock - Basic:
  $ 1.53     $ 1.94  
                 
Earnings Per Share of Common Stock - Diluted:
  $ 1.52     $ 1.93  
                 
Cash Dividends Declared per share of Common Stock
  $ 1.728     $ 1.728  
 
 
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UIL HOLDINGS CORPORATION
 
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEET
 
(Unaudited)
 
   
December 31,
   
December 31,
 
(thousands of dollars)
 
2010
   
2009
 
ASSETS
           
Current assets
  $ 697,421     $ 236,694  
Other investments
    85,717       10,659  
   Net property, plant and equipment
    2,327,450       1,153,001  
Regulatory assets
    925,889       676,428  
Goodwill
    298,890       144,978  
   Deferred charges and other assets
    120,066       -  
Total Assets
  $ 4,455,433     $ 2,221,760  
                 
                 
                 
LIABILITIES AND CAPITALIZATION
               
Current liabilities
  $ 552,934     $ 243,334  
Noncurrent liabilities
    577,231       374,686  
Deferred income taxes
    354,164       273,558  
Regulatory liabilities
    382,366       82,457  
Total Liabilities
    1,866,695       974,035  
                 
Long-term debt, net of unamortized discount and premium
    1,511,768       673,549  
Preferred stock of subsidiary
    828       -  
Net common stock equity
    1,076,142       574,176  
Total Capitalization
    2,588,738       1,247,725  
                 
Total Liabilities and Capitalization
  $ 4,455,433     $ 2,221,760  

 
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SEGMENTED CONSOLIDATED NET INCOME SUMMARY
 
                                     
   
Quarter Ended December 31,
   
Full Year Ended December 31,
 
   
2010
   
2009
   
Difference
   
2010
   
2009
   
Difference
 
Net Income (Loss) ($M)
                                   
Electric distribution, CTA and Other
  $ 3.7     $ 1.4     $ 2.3     $ 35.5     $ 31.7     $ 3.8  
Electric transmission
    7.3       6.1       1.2       28.3       25.3       3.0  
Total UI Net Income
  $ 11.0     $ 7.5     $ 3.5     $ 63.8     $ 57.0     $ 6.8  
                                                 
Corporate excl. acquisition & transition related expenses
    (0.6 )     (0.8 )     0.3       (2.5 )     (2.7 )     0.2  
Net Income excl. acquisition & transition related expenses
  $ 10.4     $ 6.7     $ 3.8     $ 61.3     $ 54.3     $ 7.0  
                                                 
Gas distribution
    12.9       -       12.9       12.9       -       12.9  
Acquisition & transition related expenses
    (10.9 )     -       (10.9 )     (19.3 )     -       (19.3 )
                                                 
Total Net Income
  $ 12.4     $ 6.7     $ 5.8     $ 54.9     $ 54.3     $ 0.6  
                                                 
Average Shares Outstanding - Basic
    50.5       30.0               35.7       28.0          
                                                 
Earnings per Share
                                               
Electric distribution, CTA and Other
  $ 0.07     $ 0.04     $ 0.03     $ 0.99     $ 1.13     $ (0.14 )
Electric transmission
    0.15       0.21       (0.06 )     0.79       0.90       (0.11 )
Total UI
  $ 0.22     $ 0.25     $ (0.03 )   $ 1.78     $ 2.03     $ (0.25 )
                                                 
Corporate excl. acquisition & transition related expenses
    (0.01 )     (0.03 )     0.02       (0.07 )     (0.09 )     0.02  
EPS excl. acquisition & transition related expenses
  $ 0.21     $ 0.22     $ (0.01 )   $ 1.71     $ 1.94     $ (0.23 )
                                                 
Gas distribution
    0.26       -       0.26       0.36       -       0.36  
Acquisition & transition related expenses
    (0.22 )     -       (0.22 )     (0.54 )     -       (0.54 )
                                                 
Total EPS - Basic
  $ 0.25     $ 0.22     $ 0.03     $ 1.53     $ 1.94     $ (0.41 )
                                                 
EPS excl. acquisition & transition  related activities
                                               
Net Income excl. acquisition & transition related activities
  $ 0.21     $ 0.22     $ (0.01 )   $ 1.71     $ 1.94     $ (0.23 )
September 2010 equity issuance
    0.14       -       0.14       0.33       -       0.33  
EPS excl. acquisition & transition related activities and September 2010 equity issuance
  $ 0.35     $ 0.22     $ 0.13     $ 2.04     $ 1.94     $ 0.10  

 
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