Eversource Energy ES reported first-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of $1.73 per share, which topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.59 by 8.81%. The bottom line increased 15.33% from the year-ago figure of $1.50.
Total Revenues of ES
Revenues of $4.50 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $4.21 billion by 6.88%. Total revenues also increased 9.37% from the year-ago figure of $4.12 billion.
Eversource Energy Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Eversource Energy price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Eversource Energy Quote
Highlights of ES’ Q1 Results
Total operating expenses were $3.43 billion, up 7.40% year over year. The increase was due to higher purchased power, purchased natural gas and transmission costs, increased operations and maintenance expenses, higher Energy Efficiency Programs spending and a rise in Taxes Other Than Income Taxes expenses.
Operating income totaled $1.08 billion, up 16.17% year over year.
Interest expenses amounted to $365.3 million, 21.41% higher than the prior-year level.
ES’ Segmental Performance
Electric Transmission: Earnings totaled $224.3 million, up 12.49% year over year. This was driven by a higher level of investment in Eversource Energy’s electric transmission system and an increase in non-refundable revenues.
Electric Distribution: Earnings amounted to $202.8 million, up 7.64% year over year. This was driven by higher revenues from base distribution rate hikes at Eversource's New Hampshire and Massachusetts electric businesses and ongoing investments in its distribution system.
Natural Gas Distribution: This segment reported earnings of $295.3 million, up 35.21% from $218.4 million in the year-ago quarter. This was due to the implementation of the new base distribution rate hike at all of Eversource’s gas businesses, effective Nov. 1, 2025.
Water Distribution: Earnings amounted to $6.4 million, up 78% from $3.6million in the year-ago quarter, driven by higher revenue growth.
Eversource Parent & Other Companies: The segment reported a loss of $78.1 million, wider than the year-ago quarter’s reported loss of $59 million. This was due to higher interest expense and an increased effective tax rate.
ES’ Guidance
Eversource Energy expects 2026 earnings in the range of $4.57-$4.72 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the same is pinned at $4.70, which is near the higher end of the company’s guided range. ES expects the long-term EPS growth rate to be between 5% and 7%, supported by regulatory and strategic outcomes in 2026
The company expects cash from operations of $24.2-$24.7 billion during 2026-2030.
Eversource Energy expects to invest $27.8 billion in 2026-2030. This includes $1.3 billion in capital investment for Eversource’s water business. This current five-year capital expenditure plan reflects a $2.3 billion increase from the previous five-year plan.
The company expects to distribute dividends of $6.7-$7.2 billion during 2026-2030.
ES’ Zacks Rank
Eversource Energy currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Upcoming Utility Releases
Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. AQN is scheduled to report first-quarter results on May 8. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter EPS is pinned at 11 cents, which implies a year-over-year decrease of 21.43%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter sales is pinned at $697.9 million, which suggests year-over-year growth of 0.79%.
PPL Corporation PPL is scheduled to report first-quarter results on May 8. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter EPS is pinned at 61 cents, which implies a year-over-year increase of 1.67%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter sales is pinned at $2.62 billion, which suggests year-over-year growth of 4.65%.
Global Water Resources, Inc. GWRS is scheduled to report first-quarter results on May 14. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter EPS is pinned at a loss of 2 cents, which implies a year-over-year decrease of 200%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter sales is pinned at $13.0 million, which suggests year-over-year growth of 4.33%.
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).