Evergy (NYSE: EVRG) reported Q4 EPS of $0.32, $0.01 better than the analyst estimate of $0.31.

“The continued execution of our merger plan resulted in another year of solid financial results, including a more than 13% year-over-year increase in adjusted earnings per share,” said Terry Bassham, Evergy president and chief executive officer. “We remain focused on realizing the on-going benefits and value our merger is creating for all Evergy stakeholders.”

Capital Plan Update

As previously discussed on the Company’s third quarter conference call, Evergy has evaluated additional capital investment opportunities and believes there are significant additional infrastructure investment opportunities in Missouri. In addition, since engaging with Elliott Management and prior to the establishment of the new Strategic Review & Operations Committee, new opportunities for incremental infrastructure investments were identified. As a result, Evergy is increasing its five-year investment plan to $7.6 billion through 2024 compared to $6.1 billion for its prior five-year plan ending in 2023. The $1.5 billion incremental five-year infrastructure spending is expected to be invested in projects that modernize the electric grid and improve reliability, while reducing operations and maintenance expense. In 2019, Evergy made $1.2 billion of infrastructure investments under its capital plan.

With the increased capital investment, Evergy has elected to halt the remainder of its share repurchase program. As of the end of 2019, the Company had completed 75% of its repurchase program, repurchasing 45 million of its 60 million share authorization. Evergy believes the remaining balance sheet capacity would be better deployed toward both the $1.5 billion of incremental infrastructure spending already identified and potential additional infrastructure investment opportunities to be identified by the Strategic Review & Operations Committee.

“2019 was a success on many fronts, as evidenced by savings well ahead of plan, meaningful capital returns, including a 6.3% increase in our dividend, and strong customer reliability and experience metrics,” Bassham continued. “We are committed to building on this success. Our capital plan through 2024 enables us to further modernize and harden the electric grid to support the quality service our customers expect.”

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