AES Q1 Earnings Fall Short of Estimates, Revenues Rise Y/Y
AES Corporation’s AES first-quarter 2021 adjusted earnings of 28 cents per share missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents by 6.7%. Moreover, earnings declined 3.4% from the year-ago quarter’s 29 cents.
Barring a one-time adjustment, the company incurred GAAP loss of 22 cents per share in the reported quarter against earnings of 22 cents in the prior-year period.
Highlights of the Release
AES generated total revenues of $2.64 billion in the first quarter, up 12.7% year over year. The top line also exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.41 million by 9.5%.
Total cost of sales was $1,971 million in the first quarter, up 7.6% year over year.
Operating income came in at $664 million, up from $507 million in the year-ago period.
Interest expenses totaled $190 million, down from $233 million in the year-earlier period.
AES signed 1,088 MW of new PPAs for renewables and energy storage, including a 10-year supply agreement with Google for 500 MW of 24/7 carbon-free energy in Virginia.
The AES Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
The AES Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | The AES Corporation Quote
Financial Condition
AES reported cash and cash equivalents of $1,886 million as of Mar 31, 2021, compared with $1,089 million as of Dec 31, 2020.
Non-recourse debt totaled $15,014 million as of Mar 31, up from $15,005 million as of Dec 31.
In the first quarter of 2020, cash from operating activities was $253 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s $373 million.
Total capital expenditures during the first quarter amounted to $432 million, which decreased from $576 million incurred in the year-ago quarter.
Guidance
For 2021, AES reaffirmed its EPS guidance in the range of $1.50-$1.58. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for current-year earnings is pegged at $1.55, which is above the mid-point of the guided range.
Zacks Rank
AES currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Recent Utility Releases
DTE Energy Company DTE reported first-quarter 2021 operating earnings per share of $2.44, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2.16 by 13%.
American Electric Power Co., Inc. AEP reported first-quarter 2021 adjusted earnings per share of $1.15, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.23 by 6.5%.
NextEra Energy, Inc. NEE reported first-quarter 2021 adjusted earnings of 67 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 60 cents by 11.7%.
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