Pinnacle West Capital Corporation 2026 Q2 Earnings Call

Thank you, Matthew. I would like to thank everyone for participating in this conference call and webcast to review our second quarter earnings, recent developments, and operating performance. Our speakers today will be our Chairman, President, and CEO, Ted Geisler, and our CFO, Andrew Cooper. Jacob Tetlow, COO, and Jose Esparza, SVP of Public Policy, are also here with us. First, I need to cover a few details with you. The slides that we will be using are available on our investor relations website, along with our earnings release and related information. Today's comments and our slides contain forward-looking statements based on current expectations and actual results may differ materially from expectations. Our second quarter 2026 Form 10-Q was filed this morning.

Please refer to that document for forward-looking statements, cautionary language, as well as the risk factors and MD&A sections, which identify risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in our disclosures. A replay of this call will be available shortly on our website for the next 30 days. It will also be available by telephone through August 11th, 2026. I will now turn the call over to Ted.

Thank you, Amanda. Thank you all for joining us today. We had a solid second quarter supported by disciplined execution across the business. Before Andrew walks through the results and our updated outlook, I'd like to share a few updates on recent operational and regulatory developments. Arizona's economy remains on a strong and sustainable growth trajectory, further cementing the state's standing as a national leader in semiconductor manufacturing and advanced technology. A major highlight this quarter was Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company's announcement of an additional $100 billion investment in Arizona, bringing its total commitment to $265 billion. TSMC now plans to develop up to 12 leading-edge fabrication and advanced packaging facilities in North Phoenix, along with a dedicated research and development campus. The ripple effect goes well beyond TSMC's own facilities.

Nearly 20,000 acres of surrounding land are now in various stages of planning and development, giving rise to an entirely new economic corridor in the region. Halo Vista is a great example. Development is already underway with the first tenant expected to arrive in the first half of next year. Over the next decade, the project is expected to grow to approximately 30 million square feet of mixed-use development and about 9,000 residential units. It's just one illustration of the sustained growth we're seeing across our service territory. To meet that growth, our all-of-the-above resource strategy is built to keep pace while continuing to deliver reliable and affordable service every day to our customers. Recently, we announced our intent to convert two retired coal-fired units at the Cholla power plant to natural gas. Once complete, the project is expected to provide approximately 380 megawatts of reliable dispatchable generation by 2029.

By repurposing existing infrastructure and transmission assets, we're able to reliably serve growing demand while maximizing the affordable value of assets already in place. Generation investment alone won't be enough to support Arizona's long-term growth. That's why we're also making significant investments in transmission, with multiple projects underway and additional opportunities under development. These investments enhance system reliability and resiliency, improve integration of new resources, and expand access to regional markets and out-of-state generation. Importantly, they also benefit from constructive and timely recovery through our FERC formula rate while creating opportunities for additional wheeling revenue that helps support affordability for our retail customers. Turning to our rate case, we concluded 31 days of hearings on July 7th and have now moved into the briefing phase. Initial briefs are due August 27th with reply briefs due September 11th.

We expect the administrative law judge to issue a recommended opinion and order later this year, which would then advance to the commission for consideration. Based on this procedural schedule, we continue to expect a final commission decision before year-end. Throughout this process, we remain focused on achieving a constructive outcome and consistent framework for recovering ongoing investments in order to support Arizona's growth and our customers' future energy needs. As we move through the summer season, I'm proud of how our team continues to deliver top-tier reliable service amid extreme heat. Reliability is at the core of our mission, made possible by disciplined planning, thoughtful resource procurement, and exceptional execution across the organization. I want to recognize our planners, engineers, operators, field personnel, and all our team members for their commitment and dedication to serving our customers safely and reliably through the summer months so far.

On August 2nd, we reached a new all-time peak demand record of 9,164 megawatts, exceeding last year's record by more than 500 megawatts. This record is a clear signal of the growth underway in our service territory, and our performance this summer demonstrates we're ready for it. We're also continuing to strengthen our customer-centric culture and enhance the experience we provide our customers. A key focus is delivering a strong billing and payment experience by offering customers flexible options and support tailored to their needs, including budget billing, flexible payment arrangements, and programs designed to help customers better manage their overall energy costs. Investments in digital platforms, customer communications, and self-serve capabilities remain an important part of our strategy to improve service, increase engagement, and ultimately lower costs over time. And those efforts are producing meaningful results.

In the second quarter, APS achieved strong performance in Escalent's customer relationship index Ranking in the first quartile for business customer satisfaction and the second quartile for residential customers, reflecting continued progress in building trust, delivering value, and creating a seamless customer experience.

In closing, we remain focused on building the infrastructure needed to support Arizona's growth, maintaining reliable and affordable service for our customers, and advancing our key regulatory initiatives. The momentum and exceptional growth we're seeing across our state underscore just how important this work is. We look forward to continuing to deliver for our customers, communities, and shareholders through the remainder of the year. With that, I'll turn the call over to Andrew.

Thank you, Ted, thanks again to everyone for joining us today. This morning, we reported our second quarter 2026 financial results. I will walk through the key drivers behind our performance and provide some additional details for the quarter. We earned $1.43 per share during Q2, a decrease of $0.15 compared to the second quarter of 2025. Higher interest net of AFUDC, higher depreciation and amortization due to higher plant balances, and lower transmission revenue were the primary negative drivers for the quarter-over-quarter comparison. These drivers were partially offset by beneficial weather and higher sales growth and usage. Weather was a benefit during the quarter. The early start to triple-digit temperatures in the valley and higher average temperatures each month of the quarter compared to the same period last year contributed to increased cooling demand.

Customer and sales growth continues to be strong, contributing approximately $0.11 of quarter-over-quarter earnings benefit. We achieved 2.1% customer growth and weather-normalized sales growth of 9.6% compared with the second quarter of last year. While we are not updating our 2026 sales growth guidance at this time, year-to-date weather-normalized sales growth has tracked more closely with our longer-term outlook. Residential sales growth came in strong at 5.6%. Commercial and industrial sales also continued to perform exceptionally well, increasing 12.7% during the quarter, driven by the ongoing expansion of a diverse mix of data center and advanced manufacturing customers. O&M expense declined modestly compared with the second quarter of last year. We remain committed to our long-term objective of reducing O&M expense on a per megawatt hour basis over time.

Across the organization, we continue to identify opportunities to improve efficiency, reduce risk, and manage costs responsibly while maintaining the high level of service and reliability our customers expect. Interest expense increased year-over-year, reflecting higher debt balances and a higher interest rate environment. Depreciation and amortization expense also increased as investments such as Agave, Ironwood, and Sundance were placed into service. These resources are providing critical capacity needed to support customer growth and maintain system reliability and are key components of our pending rate case. Transmission revenues were lower in the quarter due primarily to a final true-up adjustment related to 2025. We continue to execute well on our capital investment program and financing strategy while actively managing upcoming debt maturities.

Although we are not updating our capital expenditure guidance today, it is important to note that our current outlook does not include the recently announced Cholla conversion project. We expect that project could add up to approximately $440 million of incremental capital investment, mostly in 2027 and 2028. Turning to financing, we continue to be opportunistic with the use of our ATM and have utilized all remaining capacity from our existing $900 million ATM equity program. Earlier this morning, we announced the filing of a new $500 million ATM program that will provide ongoing funding flexibility consistent with our current equity financing guidance. Additionally, in the second quarter, we successfully issued $500 million of senior unsecured notes at Pinnacle West to refinance our maturing notes and support our broader funding strategy.