SWX

MDU Resources MDU benefits from strategic capital investments that strengthen its regulated utility and pipeline infrastructure, support rising customer demand and improve system reliability. These investments also strengthen rate-base growth, support timely regulatory recovery and drive revenue growth.The company plans capital investments of nearly $3.1 billion through 2030, including about $1.1 billion in electric, $1.4 billion in natural gas distribution and $0.64 billion in pipeline investments. These projects are aimed at upgrading and modernizing infrastructure, meeting rising customer demand and supporting system reliability.MDU also has significant pipeline growth opportunities. The proposed Bakken East Pipeline has nearly 1.2 billion cubic feet (Bcf) per day of contracted capacity and could require $2.7-$3.2 billion in additional investment if approved. The project would expand MDU’s pipeline footprint, strengthen long-term growth prospects and support earnings growth.MDU expects its customer base to grow 1-2% annually and has more than 1 gigawatt of data center load under signed electric service agreements. Its capital investments are expected to drive long-term earnings growth of 6-8%.Overall, capital investments can expand MDU’s regulated rate base, while regulatory mechanisms can support the timely recovery of eligible costs and returns on approved investments. This creates a foundation for revenues, cash flow and long-term earnings growth. Regulated gas distribution companies are increasing capital investments to replace aging pipelines, expand distribution networks and enhance system reliability as customer demand grows. These investments can expand the regulated rate base and support long-term earnings growth through approved regulatory recovery.ONE Gas OGS plans to invest approximately $4.3 billion through 2030 in system integrity, pipeline replacements and customer extensions, supporting 7-9% annual rate-base growth and earnings.Southwest Gas Holdings SWX aims to invest $6.3 billion during 2026-2030, focused on safety, new business and system upgrades, supporting a 9.5-11.5% rate-base compound annual growth rate and customer expansion. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 and 2027 EPS indicates a year-over-year increase of 5.38% and 7.91%, respectively. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research MDU's debt-to-capital ratio currently stands at 46.82%, lower than the gas distribution industry’s 54.52%. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research In the past year, the company’s shares have risen 23.6% compared with the industry’s 7.2% growth. Image Source: Zacks Investment Research MDU Resources currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report MDU Resources Group, Inc. (MDU) : Free Stock Analysis Report Southwest Gas Corporation (SWX) : Free Stock Analysis Report ONE Gas, Inc. (OGS) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Image source: The Motley Fool. Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026 at 11 a.m. ET President and Chief Executive Officer - Justin Brown Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer - Justin Forsberg Manager, Investor Relations - Tyler Franek Operator: Welcome to Southwest Gas Holdings' Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Conference Call. Today's call is being recorded, and our webcast is live. A replay will be available later today and for the next 12 months on the Southwest Gas Holdings' website. [Operator Instructions] I will now turn the call over to Tyler Franek, Manager of Investor Relations of Southwest Gas Holdings. Tyler Franek: Thank you, Joanna, and hello, everyone. We appreciate you joining the call today. This morning, we issued and posted to Southwest Gas Holdings' website our second quarter 2026 earnings release and filed the associated Form 10-Q. The slides accompanying today's call are also available on Southwest Gas Holdings' website. We'll refer to those slides by number throughout the call today. Please note that on today's call, we will address certain factors that may impact 2026 earnings and discuss longer term guidance. Information that will be discussed today contains forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's assumptions on what the future holds, but are subject to several risks and uncertainties, including uncertainties surrounding the impacts of future economic conditions, regulatory approvals and capital projects. This cautionary note and a note regarding non-GAAP measures are included on Slides 2 and 3 of this presentation in today's press release and in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We encourage you to review each of these disclosures. These risks and uncertainties may cause actual results to differ materially from statements made today. We caution against placing undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, and we are -- assume no obligation to update any such statement. As shown on Slide 4, on today's call, we have Justin Brown, President and CEO; and Justin Forsberg, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. Other members of the management team are also available to answer your questions during the Q&A portion of the call today, if necessary. I'll now turn the call over to Justin Brown. Justin Brown: Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining us today. Beginning on Slide 5, we continued our strong momentum in the second quarter, reporting adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations of $0.45, which is adjusted for the amount of California revenues that had been deferred in a memorandum account since the first quarter. This performance reflects ongoing execution of our regulatory strategy to support the timely recovery of prudent investments as well as materially lower interest expense following the payoff of all outstanding HoldCo debt last summer. We remain confident in our outlook and are reaffirming our 2026 and long-term guidance ranges. With active proceedings across each of our jurisdictions, our regulatory strategy doesn't depend on any single outcome, giving us multiple credible paths to achieve our objectives regardless of how individual cases unfold or how the political and regulatory environments might evolve. We are focused on both near-term performance and long-term value creation, anchored by our commitment to delivering safe, reliable and affordable natural gas service to our customers, strong stakeholder partnerships and disciplined capital investment and cost management supporting the economic development of the communities we serve. Turning to Slide 6. We continue to execute on our 2026 strategic priorities and remain on track to deliver on each of our key initiatives. We advanced our regulatory strategy during the quarter, continuing to progress rate case proceedings across all three jurisdictions. I will discuss these proceedings in greater detail in just a moment when we get to Slide 9. Additionally, during the quarter, we received commission approval on our Nevada Triennial Resource Plan, including prudency predeterminations for $186 million of capital investment, supporting long-term natural gas infrastructure planning and providing greater visibility into future capital investment opportunities to meet customer growth and reliability needs. We also implemented a surcharge from our first system integrity mechanism filing in Arizona for $50 million of capital that supports the timely recovery of qualifying investments. At Great Basin, we further strengthened the commercial foundation of the 2028 Expansion Project, bringing contracted demand to approximately 1 Bcf per day and revising the project design to reflect the 48-inch pipeline, resulting in both increased capital investment and annual margin estimates for the project. With those milestones achieved, our focus remains on completing the FERC CPCN filing later this year to progress the project toward regulatory approval and execution. I will discuss the project in greater detail later in our presentation. On Slide 7, at the Utility, we delivered a 12-month ended return on equity of 8.1% or 8% on an adjusted basis, reflecting the continued progress as we work to close the gap to our weighted average authorized return of 9.89%. We delivered these results even while key rate cases remain pending across our service territories, underscoring the strength of our underlying business. As we work with our Commissions to bring each of those cases to a close, we expect the associated rate relief to further improve our results. Our regulatory strategy around enhancing recovery mechanisms and pursuing constructive rate outcomes across all three jurisdictions is designed to improve our earned returns over time and helps ensure we continue delivering safe, reliable and affordable natural gas service to our customers. We also continue to benefit from a strong balance sheet and substantial liquidity, ending the quarter with approximately $270 million of cash and nearly $1 billion of available liquidity. Combined with no outstanding HoldCo debt and lower associated financing costs, we believe we are well positioned to fund our long-term capital investment program, while maintaining financial flexibility and delivering value to our stockholders. Turning to Slide 9 and an update on the progress of executing our regulatory strategy. In California, the Commission's recent decision addressed all items other than cost of capital, providing approximately $40 million of incremental annual revenue and reinforcing constructive regulatory support for our infrastructure investment programs. As part of that decision, we recognized approximately $9.7 million of incremental net income in the second quarter tied to margin that had been deferred in a memorandum account since the first quarter. A final decision on the remaining cost of capital component is currently expected later this month. In Nevada, we filed certification materials for our general rate case during the quarter, incorporating post-test year plan adjustments through May. That update brought our requested annual revenue increase to approximately $74 million. We recently received intervenor testimony, and we are currently reviewing and preparing our rebuttal position, which will be filed with the Commission next week. The party's testimony converges on a 9.3% return on equity with proposed equity layers in the 50% to 51.35% range, and the average revenue increase recommended by the parties is just under $40 million or about 52% of our request. While a hearing is currently scheduled for later this month, on a parallel path, we have also engaged in constructive settlement discussions. Either way, we are pleased with the progress and the case is progressing toward an effective date of October 2026. In Arizona, our general rate case is progressing as expected and remains on track for an effective date of April 2027. We anticipate starting to receive intervenor testimony in late September. Across all three states, the strategy is the same: pursue timely, constructive outcomes that align cost recovery with the pace of our investment. Turning to Slide 10. Great Basin made significant progress on its 2028 Expansion Project during the quarter, further strengthening the project's commercial outlook. Following our most recent open season, we executed additional binding precedent agreements for the 2028 project, bringing total contracted demand to approximately 1 Bcf per day. As we look beyond the 2028 expansion, we continue to see interest in additional capacity totaling at 1.8 Bcf across the region for the 2029 through 2035 time frame, and we continue to work on converting these expressions of interest into binding precedent agreements. As a result of this strong market demand, we have decided to proceed with a 48-inch pipeline design capable of supporting up to 1 Bcf per day of incremental transportation capacity beyond the currently contracted demand, and we will be able to accommodate additional future demand through compression additions. This design enhancement results in an upward pressure on our capital investment need for the 2028 expansion, which we now estimate at approximately $2.3 billion, resulting in approximately $270 million to $300 million of incremental annual margin upon completion. We plan to incorporate these updates into our long-term capital expenditures, rate base and earnings guidance expectations as part of our annual 5-year planning refresh, which typically concludes in February. We are focused on a timely filing for FERC approval to ensure we meet the expected in-service date and our preparations remain on track, including environmental work, field surveys, public outreach and engineering development. We continue to target a filing before the end of the year, CPCN approval in late 2027 and a fourth quarter 2028 in-service date with the recent increase in contracted demand not expected to impact the project's regulatory schedule. Overall, we are encouraged by the strong commercial momentum behind the project and believe it represents a compelling long-term growth opportunity for Great Basin and our stockholders. And with that, I will now turn the call over to Jay Foer to discuss financial performance, expected financing plans and our guidance outlook in greater detail. Justin Forsberg: Thank you, Justin. Turning to Slide 12. Adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations increased to $0.45 in the second quarter of 2026 compared to $0.37 in the second quarter of 2025. The increase was driven by strong performance at HoldCo, partially offset by slightly lower utility earnings, which were mostly driven by lower other income that was expected in our plan. Reported earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.58, reflecting revenue recognized from the California rate case approved during the quarter. For comparability, adjusted earnings excluded the portion of revenue recognized retroactively for the first quarter due to the delayed rate case approval. At HoldCo, earnings improved significantly as a result of the repayment of all outstanding parent level debt, which reduced interest expense by approximately $8.6 million compared to the prior year period. Results also benefited from higher interest income earned on elevated cash balances, reflecting the strength of our balance sheet and overall liquidity position. Turning to Slide 13, you'll see the key drivers of the quarter-over-quarter change in Southwest Gas's adjusted net income compared to the second quarter of 2026 -- comparing the second quarter of 2026 to the same period in 2025. Operating margin increased by $12.7 million, driven primarily by $6.7 million of incremental margin from rate relief, while continuing customer growth contributed an additional $1.4 million. Customer growth remains resilient across our service territories despite a prolonged higher interest rate environment. Also contributing to the increase in operating margin was $4.9 million of net recovery-related items that are offset by a comparable increase in depreciation and amortization, highlighting the strength of our regulated recovery model. Our team continues to deliver disciplined cost management, demonstrated by lower operations and maintenance expense, which declined by $3.7 million or nearly 3%. We saw lower outside services, bad debt expense and lease and rental costs. We expect our continued focus on operational efficiency to deliver our goal of maintaining flat O&M expense per customer at the utility over our 5-year plan. Depreciation and amortization increased $8.7 million, primarily reflecting a 7% increase in gas plant in service compared to the second quarter of 2025, combined with modestly higher regulatory amortization expenses that are offset by equivalent increases in margin, as I mentioned earlier. The increase in plant in-service is consistent with our disciplined infrastructure investment strategy focused on safety, reliability and customer growth. As was largely expected, other income declined by $9.4 million, driven primarily by lower interest income at the utility associated with lower cash balances relative to the prior year, lower gains from nonservice pension components, weaker COLI investment performance, the absence of a prior year gain on sale and higher charitable contributions as the 2025 contributions to the Southwest Gas Foundation were made in 2024. These planned decreases were partially offset by an increase in AFUDC equity, driven mostly by capital investment in Great Basin's 2028 Expansion Project. Finally, even though adjusted earnings were modestly lower, income taxes were modestly higher, driven mostly by the impact of excess accumulated deferred income taxes and the impact of nondeductible executive compensation. Overall, we are pleased with our performance in the first half of the year and remain confident we are on track to achieve our full year outlook. Turning to Slide 14, we outline our expected financing plan for the remainder of the year. We remain in a strong financial position with intentional liquidity being utilized to support anticipated future growth. We have yet to issue any equity outside of our dividend reinvestment plan so far in 2026, and we continue to anticipate no equity issuances this year with the remainder of our financing plan consisting of a utility level debt issuance. In addition to this anticipated bond issuance of $400 million, over the remainder of the year we have some financing housekeeping items that we plan to execute. When we extend the shelf registration later this year, you'll see us update and extend our existing at-the-market equity program while rounding out its capacity in line with the shelf extension. This is a routine renewal tied to the shelf time line and is not a signal of near-term issuance. We continue to expect only modest equity needs to fund the now expanded Great Basin 2028 Project, and we do not anticipate needing to draw meaningfully on the ATM through 2030. Looking ahead, our strong balance sheet positions us well to fund future growth. Over the long-term, we continue to believe we have sufficient leverage capacity at the holding company to absorb much of the anticipated equity needs at the utility that are driven by our $2.3 billion Expansion Project. Supported by meaningful cushion above our current downgrade thresholds, we retain considerable flexibility in how we finance that investment while preserving our financial strength. Turning briefly to Slide 16, this slide highlights that balance sheet strength and credit profile. At the consolidated level, we ended the quarter with approximately $3.4 billion of net debt after considering the purchased gas adjustment balances that are payable to customers. Both Holdings and the Utility continue to maintain strong investment-grade ratings across all three agencies with stable outlooks, most recently reaffirmed by Fitch in July, following last fall's upgrades by S&P and Moody's affirmations last April. Turning to Slide 17. We are reaffirming our 2026 guidance metrics. We also remain confident in our long-term guidance shown on the slide. As Justin outlined, with respect to Great Basin, we do not expect our capital expenditures and rate base forecast to likely increase -- we do expect our capital expenditures and rate base forecast to likely increase once we roll out our 5-year plan next February, given the continued economic development opportunities in northern Nevada. We expect to fold in our updated margin assumptions into our long-term guidance at that time as well. The updated scope of Great Basin's 2028 Expansion Project is not expected to have a material impact on our 2026 guidance metrics. And for now, the additional $600 million of expected CapEx related to that 2028 expansion as well as the impact of any future expansion phases has not yet been incorporated into our current long-term outlook. With respect to CapEx, we are on track to invest approximately $1.25 billion in 2026 and to make significant investments over the next 5 years focused on safety, reliability and system growth. With year-end 2025 rate base of $6.7 billion, this plan currently supports an expected rate base CAGR of 9.5% to 11.5% through 2030. The successful execution of our current 5-year capital program would nearly double our system-wide rate base from today by the end of 2030. Taken together, we believe today's results and the continued momentum at Great Basin reinforce the durability of our plan. We remain confident in our ability to deliver on our priorities, supporting timely recovery of prudent investments, improve earned returns and protect the strength of our balance sheet. And we remain confident in our ability to deliver our long-term financial objectives of receiving timely recovery of investments, improving earnings -- earned returns and preserving that strength. We believe we have multiple pathways to achieve our goals across a range of regulatory outcomes and political environments. We remain committed to prudent capital allocation and to supporting long-term value creation for stockholders. With that, let's open the line for your questions. Operator: [Operator Instructions] We take our first question from Constantine Lednev with Wells Fargo. Constantine Lednev: Maybe starting on the Great Basin update, great news there, obviously. In terms of compression and incremental demand, do you still see the incremental capacity bids post-2030? And would you aim to handle kind of that 1.5 Bcf that you highlighted before through compression? Or should we be thinking about any other changes in demand? Justin Brown: Yes, Constantine, it's Justin Brown. Yes. So as we mentioned, we've had expressions of interest up to 1.8 additional Bcf through that time period 2029 through 2035. And so we'll continue to work with those expressions of interest. And as those become binding agreements, that will help us get greater clarity around kind of what potential cost there might be, what compression needs there are. But we feel comfortable given the underlying design of the pipe that we can accommodate that future demand through compression. Constantine Lednev: Okay. That makes sense. And you kind of mentioned it a little bit there, just to clean up. In terms of the capital intensity kind of beyond 2030 on that, how would that scale versus the current 2 Bcf design? Justin Brown: Yes. It really will just depend on what binding precedent agreements are -- get associated with that incremental interest that we've been receiving. So it's really kind of a to-be-determined. Constantine Lednev: Okay. Understood. And then one quick follow-up just on the Arizona side, just recognizing that it's still early innings in the rate case, but is there any pressure points you kind of anticipate in the process? Do you see focus shifting kind of to the new formula constructs? Or would it be feasible to have at least a partial settlement or on the more straightforward elements? Justin Brown: Yes. I think it's a really good question. I think we always -- every time in each of our cases, we really focus on working collaboratively with the staff and the stakeholders to try to find opportunities to streamline the case where we can reach agreement. And so while it's still a little bit early in Arizona, I mean, that's the same approach we're going to take as we start to see and as the parties start to refine their positions. As we get close to getting their testimony at the end of the month, we will then look to work with the parties on areas of common ground and try to streamline the case, and we'll see how it goes. So more to come definitely over the next 30 to 60 days. Operator: Next question from Eli Jossen with JPMorgan. Elias Jossen: Maybe just thinking about some of the associated CapEx for Great Basin. I know you obviously hiked a bit here. How should we think about equity needs? I mean, is it kind of a basic $600 million, 12% ROE, 50% equity layer? Or like what was the kind of implied math? And how does that translate into future equity needs? Justin Forsberg: Yes. So I think as we kind of outlined, from an equity perspective, we're really feeling pretty confident in spite of the additional CapEx pressure that we have pretty significant capacity at the holding company, given just where we're at above our downgrade cushions, et cetera. And as you think about even the time line, right, we're spending that money really over the next couple of years. And then we're planning to get pretty significant margin out of the project that you could use to reduce that leverage that you might have taken out of the holding company. So from that perspective, we feel like there's a very clear path to leaning into some of that capacity, reducing the equity needs that are from external shareholders and -- while at the same time, just not necessarily stressing our balance sheet too significantly. Elias Jossen: Got it. And you touched on it a bit, but just thinking about the incremental expressions of interest, I know we were at 1.5 or so before. Now we're up to 1.8. Can you just talk about kind of the demand environment and what you're seeing from some of the potential customers on this pipe? Where is that coming from? And do you think there's even more in the hopper as you move through the decade? Justin Brown: Yes, Eli, it's Justin. I would say it's very similar to the demand that we've been describing along the way in terms of a variety of different industries, primarily driven by data center development, power gen, but there's also different industries in the area, mining, manufacturing. And so we feel good about it. Every time we've posted an open season, we continue to be surprised with how much additional demand continues to show up. So we feel really good about the regional economics and the attractive area of this part of the state for this type of development and it's continuing to provide robust opportunities for us to either secure this interest through binding precedent agreements or to remarket capacity down the road. And so it's something we feel good about in terms of looking at the demand and the interest that's there. Operator: Your next question comes from Ryan Levine with Citi. Ryan Levine: How is the 48-inch pipe decision impacted supply chain decision-making and more broadly, is your cost structure around the pipe really set in stone with the exception of the compression? Or any color you could share on that? Justin Brown: Yes, Ryan, it's Justin. I think when we think about the pipe, it's something we've talked about previously where we were working very closely with the supplier early on, on the ability to pivot from the 42 to 48. And so we don't anticipate any supply chain issues there. It's something we always felt comfortable early on with the ability to kind of flex on that depending on the market demand that shows up. And when we think about cost, yes, it's still -- I mean, we feel pretty good about where our cost estimates are. It's something that we exercise a lot of discipline around. We work very closely with our suppliers, our contractors to where we feel pretty good about that being in the range. And then as you mentioned, as we think about future demand, obviously, the scalability of that will depend on what compression needs we have to meet future binding precedent agreements. Ryan Levine: Okay. And then second question, any color you could share around the SB 417 rulemaking conversations and where we are in the process? Justin Brown: Yes. So the Commission back in May had issued a draft. Parties have filed comments in response to that, and the Commission has not yet taken any further action on it. So it's still kind of on a wait-and-see mode in terms of where we are on the rulemaking and any updates to kind of the draft regulations and ultimately Commission approval. Operator: This concludes the Q&A portion of today's conference. I would now like to turn the call back over to Tyler Franek for closing remarks. Tyler Franek: Thanks again, Joanna, and thank you all for joining us today and for your questions. This concludes our conference call. We appreciate your interest in Southwest Gas Holdings and look forward to seeing many of you soon. Operator: This concludes today's Southwest Gas Holdings' Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Call and Webcast. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Have a wonderful day. Before you buy stock in Southwest Gas, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Southwest Gas wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $403,337!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,334,946!* Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 958% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 214% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of August 12, 2026. This article is a transcript of this conference call produced for The Motley Fool. While we strive for our Foolish Best, there may be errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this transcript. As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Southwest Gas (SWX) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Transcript was originally published by The Motley Fool

Interested in Southwest Gas Corporation? Here are five stocks we like better. Second-quarter adjusted EPS rose to $0.45 from $0.37 a year earlier, supported by approximately $8.6 million in lower parent-level interest expense, rate relief and customer growth. Reported EPS was $0.58, including $9.7 million of net income from California rate-case revenue recognized in the quarter. Regulatory proceedings advanced in California, Nevada and Arizona. California’s decision is expected to add about $40 million in annual revenue, while Nevada’s rate case seeks approximately $74 million and remains on track for an October 2026 effective date. Southwest Gas expanded its Great Basin project after contracted demand reached about 1 billion cubic feet per day, raising projected investment to $2.3 billion and expected annual incremental margin to $270 million–$300 million. The company plans to seek federal approval before year-end and targets a fourth-quarter 2028 in-service date. Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX) reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations of $0.45, up from $0.37 in the prior-year period, as lower parent-level interest expense and regulatory progress supported results. Reported earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.58, including revenue recognized following a California rate-case decision. President and CEO Justin Brown said the adjusted result excluded the retroactive portion of California revenue that had been deferred in a memorandum account since the first quarter because of the timing of the rate-case approval. He said the company is reaffirming its 2026 and long-term guidance ranges. → No Hangover: Revisiting Microsoft One Week After Earnings “Our regulatory strategy doesn't depend on any single outcome, giving us multiple credible paths to achieve our objectives regardless of how individual cases unfold,” Brown said. Jay Ford, senior vice president of financial planning, said the year-over-year earnings improvement was driven primarily by the holding company’s performance, partially offset by slightly lower utility earnings. The holding company benefited from the repayment of all outstanding parent-level debt, reducing interest expense by approximately $8.6 million from the second quarter of 2025. Higher interest income on elevated cash balances also contributed. → MarketBeat Week in Review – 08/03 - 08/07 Operating margin increased $12.7 million from a year earlier, including $6.7 million of incremental margin from rate relief and $1.4 million from customer growth, Ford said. Debt recovery-related items added $4.9 million to operating margin, though that benefit was offset by comparable depreciation and amortization expense. Operations and maintenance expense declined $3.7 million, or nearly 3%, reflecting lower outside services, bad debt expense, and lease and rental costs. Depreciation and amortization increased $8.7 million, driven principally by a 7% rise in gas plant and service versus the prior-year quarter. → Why the Landlord of the AI Boom Could Outlast the Chipmakers Other income declined $9.4 million, with Ford citing lower utility interest income, reduced non-service pension gains, weaker corporate-owned life insurance investment performance, the absence of a prior-year gain on sale, and higher charitable contributions. The company ended the quarter with approximately $270 million in cash and nearly $1 billion in available liquidity, Brown said. Southwest Gas said its 12-month ended return on equity at the utility was 8.1%, or 8% on an adjusted basis, compared with a weighted-average authorized return of 9.89%. Management said pending rate cases and recovery mechanisms are intended to improve earned returns over time. In California, a recent commission decision resolved all matters except cost of capital and is expected to provide approximately $40 million of incremental annual revenue. The decision allowed the company to recognize about $9.7 million of incremental second-quarter net income tied to previously deferred memorandum-account margin. A final decision on the cost-of-capital component is expected later in August, according to Brown. In Nevada, the company updated its general rate-case request to approximately $74 million in annual revenue after filing certification materials incorporating post-test-year plant adjustments through May. Intervening parties have recommended an average revenue increase just under $40 million, or about 52% of the company’s request, and their testimony has converged around a 9.3% return on equity with equity ratios ranging from 50% to 51.35%. The Nevada hearing was scheduled for later in August, while the company also continued settlement discussions. Management said the case remains on track for an October 2026 effective date. Arizona’s general rate case is proceeding toward an expected April 2027 effective date, with intervener testimony anticipated in late September. Brown said the company would seek areas of agreement with parties as positions become more defined. Great Basin made additional progress on its planned 2028 expansion project, executing binding precedent agreements that brought contracted demand to approximately 1 billion cubic feet per day. The company also cited expressions of interest for another 1.8 Bcf of capacity across the region during the 2029-2035 period. In response to demand, Southwest Gas revised the project design to use a 48-inch pipeline rather than a 42-inch pipeline. The larger design is intended to support up to 1 Bcf per day of incremental transportation capacity beyond currently contracted volumes through future compression additions. The revised project is now estimated to require about $2.3 billion in capital investment and to generate approximately $270 million to $300 million in annual incremental margin once completed. Brown said the company expects to file for a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission certificate of public convenience and necessity before year-end, target approval in late 2027, and pursue a fourth-quarter 2028 in-service date. Management said it does not expect the increase in contracted demand to alter the regulatory schedule. Brown added that the company does not anticipate supply-chain issues from changing the pipe design, citing earlier coordination with suppliers on the ability to move to a 48-inch specification. The company expects to issue $400 million of utility-level debt during the remainder of 2026 and said it does not anticipate equity issuance this year outside its dividend reinvestment plan. Ford said Southwest Gas will renew and extend its at-the-market equity program when it updates its shelf registration, characterizing that action as a routine renewal rather than an indication of near-term issuance. Management expects only modest equity needs for the expanded Great Basin project and said holding-company leverage capacity could absorb much of the utility’s anticipated equity requirements. At quarter-end, consolidated net debt was approximately $3.4 billion after considering purchased-gas-adjustment balances payable to customers. Southwest Gas reiterated plans to invest approximately $1.25 billion in capital expenditures during 2026. Its existing five-year plan, based on year-end 2025 rate base of $6.7 billion, supports projected rate-base growth of 9.5% to 11.5% annually through 2030. The additional approximately $600 million of expected capital spending for the Great Basin expansion has not yet been incorporated into current long-term guidance and is expected to be addressed in the company’s five-year planning update next February. Southwest Gas Corporation (NYSE: SWX) is a publicly traded natural gas utility that provides regulated gas distribution services to residential, commercial, industrial and electric generation customers. The company's core activities include the transportation, distribution and sale of natural gas through an extensive network of pipelines, service lines and metering facilities. Southwest Gas also offers related services such as system maintenance, pipeline safety inspections, emergency response and line extensions to support customer growth and ensure reliable gas delivery. Founded in 1931 in southern Nevada, Southwest Gas has grown through strategic acquisitions and organic expansion to become one of the nation's larger natural gas utilities by customer count. This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to [email protected]. The article "Southwest Gas Q2 Earnings Call Highlights" was originally published by MarketBeat. View MarketBeat's top stocks for August 2026.

Our analysts just identified a stock with the potential to be the next Nvidia. Tell us how you invest and we'll show you why it's our #1 pick. Tap here. Performance was driven by the execution of a multi-jurisdictional regulatory strategy and significantly lower interest expense following the full repayment of HoldCo debt. The company achieved a key milestone in Nevada with the Triennial Resource Plan approval, providing prudency predeterminations for $186 million in infrastructure investment. Utility returns improved to an adjusted 8.0% ROE, though management noted a remaining gap to the authorized 9.89% that they expect to close through pending rate cases. Operational efficiency remained a focus, with O&M expenses declining by nearly 3% due to lower outside services and bad debt expense despite continued customer growth. The Great Basin 2028 Expansion Project was upsized to a 48-inch pipeline design to accommodate strong market demand, which has reached 1 Bcf per day in binding agreements. Management emphasized that their regulatory strategy is diversified across three states, reducing dependency on any single case outcome or political environment. The 2028 Expansion Project capital estimate increased to $2.3 billion, which is expected to generate $270 million to $300 million in incremental annual margin upon completion. Management anticipates no equity issuances for the remainder of 2026, with the remaining financing plan consisting of utility-level debt while leveraging holding company capacity for longer-term needs. Long-term rate base CAGR is projected at 9.5% to 11.5% through 2030, effectively doubling the system-wide rate base from 2025 levels. The company plans to file for a FERC Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) by year-end 2026, targeting a late 2027 approval and Q4 2028 in-service date. Future capacity needs beyond 2028, estimated at 1.8 Bcf of interest through 2035, are expected to be managed via incremental compression additions rather than further pipe diameter increases. A $9.7 million incremental net income gain was recognized in Q2 following a California decision that allowed for retroactive recovery of deferred margins. HoldCo interest expense decreased by $8.6 million year-over-year, reflecting a structurally leaner balance sheet following debt retirement. Other income declined by $9.4 million, attributed to lower utility cash balances, weaker COLI performance, and the timing of charitable contributions. The company plans a routine renewal of its at-the-market (ATM) equity program; however, management explicitly stated this is not a signal of near-term issuance. One stock. Nvidia-level potential. 30M+ investors trust Moby to find it first. Get the pick. Tap here. Management confirmed the 48-inch pipe design provides a foundation to accommodate the 1.8 Bcf of additional interest through 2035 via compression. Capital intensity for future phases remains 'to-be-determined' as it depends on converting current expressions of interest into binding precedent agreements. The company intends to use holding company leverage capacity to absorb equity needs at the utility level, citing significant cushion above downgrade thresholds. Management expects the high margin profile of the completed project to eventually deleverage the balance sheet, minimizing the need for external equity through 2030. Incremental demand is primarily coming from data center development and power generation, alongside mining and manufacturing sectors. Management noted that every open season has resulted in demand exceeding expectations, reinforcing confidence in regional economic development.

Delivered 8.1% Twelve-month-ended Utility ROE Great Basin Demand Raises 2028 Expansion Project CapEx and Margin Expectations Constructive CA Rate Case Decision on Items Before Cost of Capital; Final Decision Expected in August LAS VEGAS, Aug. 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: SWX) ("Southwest Gas Holdings" or "Company") today reported results for its second quarter and six-months ended June 30, 2026. This earnings press release should be read in conjunction with the Form 10-Q and earnings slides, which are concurrently being posted at www.swgasholdings.com. "We're encouraged by the progress our team made this quarter, advancing rate cases in all three states and securing binding commitments for our Great Basin 2028 expansion project," said Justin Brown, President and Chief Executive Officer of Southwest Gas Holdings. "The California Public Utilities Commission's recent decision on the non-cost-of-capital components of our rate case is a constructive step and reflects the kind of collaborative engagement we're working to enhance with regulators to better align cost recovery with the timing of our investments to ensure safe and reliable service to our customers across all three states. We remain focused on executing our growth and regulatory priorities while delivering long-term value creation for all stakeholders." "We remain optimistic about the opportunity and progress we're seeing on our Great Basin expansion," added Brown. "Contracted demand for the 2028 expansion has grown to roughly 1 billion cubic feet per day, and the project continues to see strong commercial interest, including an additional 1.8 Bcf of expressions of interest which could lead to binding agreements for future phases during the 2029 to 2035 period. That growing interest points to increased capital investment opportunities and enhanced revenue potential for the initial phase of the project. Based on the contracted demand, we now estimate annual margin of $270 to $300 million once in service and a corresponding capital investment for the project of approximately $2.3 billion," added Brown. Recent Operational and Financial Highlights Delivered significant quarter-over-quarter growth in earnings per share from continuing operations compared with the prior-year period, reflecting constructive regulatory outcomes, continued infrastructure investment recovery, and disciplined operational execution; Maintained a strong balance sheet and financial flexibility, ending the quarter with $270.5 million of cash and cash equivalents and nearly $1.0 billion in available liquidity to support, among other items, organic growth initiatives and infrastructure investment programs; Southwest Gas Corporation ("Southwest Gas", "Utility", "Natural Gas Distribution" segment) delivered Utility return on period-end equity of 8.1% and adjusted Utility return on period-end equity of 8.0% over the 12 months ended June 30, 2026; Achieved a constructive California regulatory outcome providing approximately $40 million of incremental annual revenue, reinforcing regulatory support for infrastructure investments and enhancing earnings visibility. The decision also resulted in the recognition of approximately $9.7 million of incremental net income in the second quarter related to previously deferred first quarter revenue, which had been tracked in a previously authorized memorandum account pending the regulatory decision; remaining cost-of-capital component is proceeding with a final decision expected in August; Southwest Gas' Arizona System Integrity Mechanism rates became effective on April 1, 2026, supporting more timely recovery of eligible safety and reliability investments, subject to an annual capital investment cap of $50 million; Southwest Gas filed Nevada certification materials for the Nevada general rate case, including post-test-year plant adjustments through May 2026, supporting timely recovery of ongoing infrastructure investments and system improvements and increased Southwest Gas' requested annual revenue increase to ~$74 million; Secured approval of the Nevada Triennial Resource Plan, including prudency pre-determinations for approximately $186 million of capital investments, providing enhanced visibility into possible future rate base growth and supporting long-term natural gas infrastructure planning to serve growing customer demand and reliability needs; Continued commercial momentum for the Great Basin 2028 Expansion Project, with binding precedent agreements ("BPAs") now totaling approximately 1 Bcf per day, demonstrating strong customer demand and supporting one of the Company's most significant long-term infrastructure growth opportunities. Invested $520.0 million in infrastructure modernization and expansion during the first six months of 2026 (on an accrual basis), including approximately $115 million toward the Great Basin 2028 Expansion Project, advancing a robust capital investment program designed to drive long-term rate base growth, system reliability, and shareholder value creation; and Southwest Gas achieved gross margin of $158.4 million and operating margin of $319.7 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026. Great Basin 2028 Expansion Project Updates During the second quarter, Great Basin executed additional BPAs now totaling approximately 1 Bcf per day of currently contracted demand for its 2028 Expansion Project. Efforts to execute additional BPAs are ongoing to convert expressions of interest of an additional ~1.8 Bcf for requested in-service dates ranging from 2029 through 2035. All additional expressions of interest remain subject to the successful negotiation of BPAs and the posting of required surety. Based on current engineering and design assumptions, the 2028 Expansion Project is now projected to result in: Approximately 1 Bcf per day of incremental demand; 48" designed pipe size to serve contracted demand and accommodate additional capacity demand with future compression additions; Approximately $2.3 billion of estimated capital investment. Following project in-service, potential annual incremental margin of approximately $270 million to $300 million. The Company plans to incorporate these expected increases into its long-term capital expenditure, rate base, and earnings guidance expectations in conjunction with its annual five-year planning refresh cycle that typically concludes in February. The Company does not expect 2026 capital expenditures guidance to be materially impacted by the above project estimates. Preparations for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) certificate (CPCN) application, expected to be filed later in 2026, are progressing as planned, including field surveys, public outreach, and engineering and design development. The current FERC filing schedule is not expected to be impacted by the incremental demand received. Project shippers who executed BPAs are required post surety and execute minimum twenty-year Transportation Service Agreements upon FERC approval of the CPCN to maintain the planned project schedule and associated regulatory timeline. Future demand beyond the 2028 Expansion Project, may support additional expansion opportunities with their own regulatory approvals and construction schedules. Earnings Reconciliation Table The table below provides a reconciliation of net income attributable to Southwest Gas Holdings for the three and six months ended June 30, 2026, from the same period in 2025 (items are in millions and are before related income tax impact unless otherwise noted): Southwest Gas Holdings' net income from continuing operations was $42.1 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026, and adjusted net income from continuing operations was $32.4 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026, representing a $42.9 million increase in net income from continuing operations when compared to the three months ended June 30, 2025 and a $5.9 million increase in adjusted net income from continuing operations when compared to the three months ended June 30, 2025. Southwest Gas Holdings' net income from continuing operations was $180.5 million for the six months ended June 30, 2026, and adjusted net income from continuing operations was $180.5 million for the six months ended June 30, 2026, representing a $47.0 million increase in net income from continuing operations when compared to the six months ended June 30, 2025 and a $19.7 million increase in adjusted net income from continuing operations when compared to the six months ended June 30, 2025. Southwest Gas / Natural Gas Distribution - Second Quarter 2026 In the three months ended June 30, 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, the decrease in net income of $4.9 million was primarily due to: $16.2 million higher Income tax expense primarily due to a $12.0 million state income tax benefit recognized in the prior year's quarter related to a change in state apportionment rates that did not reoccur in the current quarter. The increase was also driven by higher pre-tax income differences and lower amortization of excess accumulated deferred income taxes in the current quarter. $9.4 million lower Other income, which is net of other deductions, primarily driven by lower interest income earned on money market accounts of $2.7 million, lower net periodic benefit gain related to pension non-service components of $2.2 million, lower COLI policies gains of $1.9 million largely driven by lower market performance compared to the prior year's quarter, and the absence of a prior year gain on the sale of certain miscellaneous assets of $1.6 million. Additionally, contributions to the Southwest Gas Foundation were $1.6 million higher in the current period, primarily due to timing of the contributions. These decreases were partially offset by an increase in Equity AFUDC of $0.9 million related to the commencement of the Great Basin 2028 Expansion Project. $8.7 million, or 13%, higher Depreciation and amortization expense reflecting a $726.7 million, or 7%, increase in gas plant in service since the corresponding second quarter of 2025, in addition to $4.9 million in higher amortization related to regulatory account balances noted below. The increase in plant was attributable to pipeline capacity reinforcement work, franchise requirements, scheduled pipe replacement activities, and new infrastructure. Partially offset by: $25.5 million higher Operating margin primarily driven by updated rates that better align with Southwest Gas' cost of service and capital investments across California adding approximately $19.5 million of incremental margin, the majority of which was attributable to the revenue recognized in connection with final approval of the All-Party Settlement, before adjustments to cost of capital, associated with the California general rate case, and $1.4 million attributable to customer growth for all territories. Also contributing to the increase was $4.9 million related to the combined impacts of increases in recovery/return, offset by a comparable increase in depreciation and amortization expense in regulatory account balances noted above. $3.7 million lower Operations and maintenance expense primarily due to lower net insurance cost of $2.5 million, outside services costs of $1.7 million, and bad debt expenses. These decreases were partially offset by increases in employee-related labor costs and leak survey and line locating expense. Southwest Gas / Natural Gas Distribution - Year-To-Date 2026 In the six months ended June 30, 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, the decrease in net income of $10.1 million was primarily due to: $22.6 million higher Income tax expense due to a $12.0 million state income tax benefit recognized in the prior year's period related to a change in state apportionment rates that did not reoccur in the current period. The increase was also driven by higher pre-tax income differences, lower amortization of excess accumulated deferred income taxes, and lower nondeductible executive compensation in the current period when compared to the prior year's period. $14.7 million, or 9%, higher Depreciation and amortization expense reflecting a $726.7 million, or 7%, increase in gas plant in service since the corresponding period of 2025, in addition to $6.0 million in higher amortization related to regulatory account balances noted below. The increase in plant was attributable to pipeline capacity reinforcement work, franchise requirements, scheduled pipe replacement activities, and new infrastructure. $13.0 million lower Other income, which is net of other deductions, primarily driven by lower interest income earned on money market accounts of $5.9 million, lower net periodic benefit gain related to pension non-service components of $4.3 million, the absence of a prior year gain on the sale of certain miscellaneous assets of $1.6 million, and higher contributions to the Southwest Gas Foundation of $1.9 million primarily due to timing differences. These decreases were partially offset by an increase in Equity AFUDC of $1.6 million related to the commencement of the Great Basin 2028 expansion project. $1.8 million higher Taxes other than income taxes due primarily to increase in property taxes across all of Southwest Gas' jurisdictions. Partially offset by: $40.7 million higher Operating margin primarily driven by updated rates that better align with Southwest Gas' cost of service and capital investments across all territories adding approximately $32.7 million of incremental margin, approximately $20.2 million of which was attributable to the revenue recognized in connection with final approval of the All-Party Settlement, before adjustments to cost of capital, associated with the California general rate case, and $4.5 million attributable to customer growth for all territories, which is reflective of 1% net customer growth during the twelve months ended June 30, 2026. Also contributing to the increase were $4.9 million attributable to nondecoupled billed margin across Arizona and Nevada and $6.0 million related to the combined impacts of increases in recovery/return, offset by a comparable increase in depreciation and amortization expense in regulatory account balances noted above. Partially offsetting the increase is $4.7 million attributable to the absence of recovery in the current period, as recovery under the Vintage Steel Pipeline Program was concluded during the first quarter of 2025. $1.6 million lower Operations and maintenance expense primarily due to lower net insurance cost and bad debt expense. These decreases were partially offset by increases in employee-related labor costs, including incentive compensation costs and leak survey and line locating expense. Corporate and Administrative - Second Quarter 2026 In the three months ended June 30, 2026, net income improved by $47.7 million compared to a net loss in the same period in 2025; the improvement was primarily due to: $36.7 million lower Income tax expense due to a $39.2 million state income tax expense recognized in the prior year's quarter related to a change in state apportionment rates that did not reoccur in the current quarter. The decrease was partially offset by higher pre-tax income differences in the current quarter when compared to the prior year's quarter and changes to state net operating losses to reflect expected utilization. $8.6 million lower Net interest deductions primarily driven by the repayment of the $550.0 million term loan in the summer of 2025 as well as the decrease in the balance that was previously outstanding on the revolving credit facility. $2.6 million higher Other income, which is net of other deductions, primarily driven by an increase in interest income earned on money market accounts. Corporate and Administrative - Year-To-Date 2026 In the six months ended June 30, 2026, net income improved by $57.0 million compared to a net loss in the same period in 2025; the improvement was primarily due to: $31.1 million lower Income tax expense due to a $39.2 million state income tax expense recognized in the prior year's period related to a change in state apportionment rates that did not recur in the current period. The decrease was partially offset by higher pre-tax income differences in the current period when compared to the prior year's period and changes to state net operating losses to reflect expected utilization; $18.3 million lower Net interest deductions primarily driven by the repayment of the $550.0 million term loan in the summer of 2025 as well as the decrease in the balance that was previously outstanding on the revolving credit facility; and $8.0 million higher Other income, which is net of other deductions, primarily driven by an increase in interest income earned on money market accounts. Discontinued Operations - Second Quarter 2026 In the three months ended June 30, 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, the decrease in net loss of $39.4 million reflects the absence of Centuri's operating results in the current period following the completion of its disposition, compared to a full quarter of Centuri's results included in the prior year period. Discontinued Operations - Year-To-Date 2026 In the six months ended June 30, 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, the decrease in net loss of $59.8 million reflects the absence of Centuri's operating results in the current period following the completion of its disposition, compared to a full six months of Centuri's results included in the prior year period. Southwest Gas Holdings Guidance and Outlook: The Company reaffirms the following 2026 and forward-looking guidance ranges, as follows: Conference Call and Webcast Southwest Gas Holdings will host a conference call on Tuesday, August 5, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. ET to discuss its second quarter 2026 results. The associated press release and presentation slides are available at https://investors.swgasholdings.com. The call will be webcast live on the Company's website at www.swgasholdings.com. The telephone dial-in numbers in the U.S. and Canada are toll free: (800) 836-8184 or international (646) 357-8785. The webcast will be archived on the Southwest Gas Holdings website. About Southwest Gas Holdings Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc., through its primary operating subsidiary Southwest Gas Corporation, engages in the business of purchasing, distributing and transporting natural gas. Southwest Gas Corporation is a dynamic energy company committed to exceeding the expectations of over 2 million customers throughout Arizona, Nevada, and California by providing safe, reliable, and affordable service while innovating sustainable energy solutions to fuel the growth in its communities. Forward-Looking Statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such statements include, without limitation, statements regarding Southwest Gas Holdings and Southwest Gas and their expectations or intentions regarding the future and underlying assumptions. These forward-looking statements can often be identified by the use of words such as "will", "predict", "continue", "forecast", "expect", "believe", "anticipate", "outlook", "potential", "could", "target", "project", "intend", "plan", "seek", "pursue", "estimate", "should", "may" and "assume", as well as variations of such words and similar expressions referring to the future, and include (without limitation) statements regarding expectations of continuing growth in 2026 and the future, 2026 guidance and outlook, the expected timing, impact and outcome of recent and ongoing general rate cases or other regulatory proceedings, earnings per share, capital expenditure and rate base CAGR guidance, and statements regarding the Great Basin 2028 Expansion Project, including projected demand, capacity, capital expenditures, impacts and investment opportunity. In addition, the statements that are not historic constitute forward-looking statements. A number of important factors affecting the business and financial results of the Company and the Utility could cause actual results to differ materially from those stated in the forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, the timing and amount of rate case filings, approvals and rate relief, changes in rate design, net customer growth rates, the effects of regulation/deregulation, tax reform and similar changes and related regulatory decisions, the potential for, and the impact of, a credit rating downgrade, future earnings trends, inflation, sufficiency of labor markets and similar resources, seasonal patterns, current and future litigation, regulatory approvals for the Great Basin 2028 Expansion Project along with capital construction costs, and the impacts of stock market volatility. In addition, the Company can provide no assurance that its discussions about future earnings per share from continuing operations or operating margin, operating income, COLI earnings, interest expense, and capital expenditures of the Company will occur. Likewise, the Company can provide no assurance regarding segment revenues, margin or growth rates, that projects expected to be undertaken with results as stated will occur, nor that interest expense patterns will transpire as expected. Factors that could cause actual results to differ also include (without limitation) those discussed under the heading "Risk Factors," "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," and "Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosure about Market Risk" in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc.'s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and in the Company's, and Southwest Gas Corporation's current and periodic reports, including its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this press release, even if subsequently made available by the Company on its website or otherwise. The Company does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments, or otherwise. Non-GAAP Measures. This press release contains financial measures that have not been calculated in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S. ("GAAP"). Non-GAAP measures include (i) Southwest Gas Holdings adjusted earnings (loss) per share from continuing operations, (ii) Southwest Gas Holdings adjusted net income (loss) from continuing operations, (iii) Natural Gas Distribution segment adjusted earnings (loss) per share, and (iv) Natural Gas Distribution segment adjusted net income (loss) for the three and six months ended June 30, 2026 and June 30, 2025. Also included in this press release, Natural Gas Distribution segment adjusted ROE for the twelve-months-ended June 30, 2026. Management uses these non-GAAP measures internally to evaluate performance and in making financial and operational decisions. Management believes that its presentation of these measures provides investors greater transparency with respect to its results of operations and that these measures are useful for a period-to-period comparison of results. Management also believes that providing these non-GAAP financial measures helps investors evaluate the Company's operating performance, profitability, and business trends in a way that is consistent with how management evaluates such performance. Management also uses the non-GAAP measure, operating margin, related to its natural gas distribution operations. Southwest Gas recognizes operating revenues from the distribution and transportation of natural gas (and related services) to customers. Gas cost is a tracked cost, which is passed through to customers without markup under purchased gas adjustment mechanisms, impacting revenues and net cost of gas sold on a dollar-for-dollar basis, thereby having no impact on Southwest Gas' profitability. Therefore, management routinely uses operating margin, defined by management as regulated operations revenues less the net cost of gas sold, in its analysis of Southwest Gas' financial performance. Operating margin also forms a basis for Southwest Gas' various regulatory decoupling mechanisms. Management believes supplying information regarding operating margin provides investors and other interested parties with useful and relevant information to analyze Southwest Gas' financial performance in a rate-regulated environment. The tables included below provide a reconciliation for these non-GAAP measures. We do not provide a reconciliation of forward-looking Non-GAAP Measures to the corresponding forward-looking GAAP measure due to our inability to project special charges and certain expenses. Reconciliation of non-GAAP financial measure of Adjusted net income (loss) and Adjusted diluted earnings (loss) per share and their comparable GAAP measure of Net income (loss) and Diluted earnings (loss) per share is presented below. Amounts in thousands, except per share amounts and percentages. View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/southwest-gas-holdings-inc-reports-second-quarter-2026-financial-results-reaffirms-full-year-2026-guidance-302842972.html

This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Release Date: August 05, 2026 For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript. Adjusted EPS from continuing operations increased to $0.45 in Q2 2026, up from $0.37 in Q2 2025, driven by strong Holdco performance and lower interest expense. Regulatory strategy is advancing across all three jurisdictions, with California's recent decision providing approximately $40 million in incremental annual revenue and Nevada's case progressing toward an October 2026 effective date. Great Basin's 2028 expansion project has secured approximately 1 Bcf/d of contracted demand, with a revised 48-inch pipeline design expected to generate $270-$300 million in incremental annual margin. Strong balance sheet with approximately $270 million in cash, nearly $1 billion in available liquidity, and no outstanding Holdco debt, providing financial flexibility. Reaffirmed 2026 and long-term guidance, with expectations of no equity issuances in 2026 and only modest equity needs through 2030, supported by holding company leverage capacity. Utility earnings were slightly lower in Q2 2026, driven by lower other income, including reduced interest income and weaker pension and investment performance. Nevada rate case faces potential reduction, with intervenor testimony recommending an average revenue increase of just under $40 million, or about 52% of the company's request. The expanded Great Basin project now requires approximately $2.3 billion in capital, a $600 million increase, which has not yet been incorporated into long-term guidance. Regulatory uncertainty persists, particularly in California where the cost of capital decision is still pending, and in Arizona where the rate case is still in early stages. Other income declined by $9.4 million in Q2 2026, reflecting lower interest income, weaker investment performance, and the absence of a prior year gain on sale. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 11 Warning Signs with SWX. Is SWX fairly valued? Test your thesis with our free DCF calculator. Q: Regarding the Great Basin 2028 expansion project, do you still see incremental capacity demand post-2030, and would you handle the additional 1.8 BCF of interest through compression or other design changes?A: Justin Brown (President and CEO) confirmed that expressions of interest for additional capacity total up to 1.8 BCF for the 2029-2035 timeframe. The company will continue converting these into binding precedent agreements, and given the 48-inch pipeline design, they are confident they can accommodate future demand through compression additions without major design changes. Q: With the increased CapEx for Great Basin (now ~$2.3 billion), how should we think about future equity needs, and what is the implied math for financing this expansion?A: Justin Forsberg (CFO and Treasurer) explained that despite the additional CapEx pressure, the company has significant capacity at the holding company given its position above downgrade cushions. The spending occurs over the next couple of years, and the project's significant margin upon completion can be used to reduce leverage, providing a clear path to minimize external equity needs without stressing the balance sheet. Q: Can you provide more color on the demand environment for the Great Basin pipeline, where the incremental interest is coming from, and whether more demand could materialize through the decade?A: Justin Brown noted the demand is driven by a variety of industries, primarily data center development and power generation, along with mining and manufacturing. Each open season has continued to surprise with additional demand, reflecting strong regional economics. The company feels good about converting this interest into binding agreements or remarketing capacity down the road. Q: How has the decision to use a 48-inch pipe impacted supply chain decision-making, and is the cost structure for the pipe set in stone?A: Justin Brown stated that the company worked closely with the supplier early on to pivot from 42-inch to 48-inch, so no supply chain issues are anticipated. Cost estimates are well-disciplined and developed in close coordination with suppliers and contractors. Future scalability will depend on compression needs tied to additional binding precedent agreements. Q: Can you share any updates on the SB 417 rule-making conversations and where the process currently stands?A: Justin Brown indicated that the commission issued a draft in May, parties filed comments, but no further action has been taken yet. The company is in a "wait and see" mode regarding updates to the draft regulations and ultimate commission approval. Q: On the Arizona rate case, are there any anticipated pressure points, and could there be a partial settlement on more straightforward elements?A: Justin Brown explained that the company consistently focuses on working collaboratively with staff and stakeholders to streamline cases and find common ground. While it's still early in Arizona, as parties refine positions and testimony arrives at the end of the month, they will look to reach agreements on areas of common ground, with more clarity expected over the next 30-60 days. Q: What drove the increase in adjusted EPS to $0.45 in Q2 2026, and how does this compare to the prior year?A: Justin Forsberg highlighted that adjusted EPS increased from $0.37 in Q2 2025, driven by strong performance at Holdco due to the repayment of all outstanding parent-level debt (reducing interest expense by ~$8.6 million) and higher interest income on elevated cash balances. This was partially offset by slightly lower utility earnings due to planned lower other income. Q: Can you break down the key drivers of the quarter-over-quarter change in adjusted net income for the utility segment?A: Justin Forsberg detailed that operating margin increased by $12.7 million, driven by $6.7 million of incremental margin from rate relief, $1.4 million from customer growth, and $4.9 million of debt recovery items offset by higher depreciation. O&M expense declined by $3.7 million (nearly 3%) due to lower outside services, bad debt, and lease costs. Other income declined by $9.4 million due to lower interest income, weaker pension and Coli investment performance, and the absence of a prior year gain on sale. Q: What is the expected financing plan for the remainder of 2026, and are there any plans for equity issuance?A: Justin Forsberg confirmed no equity issuances are anticipated in 2026 outside of the dividend reinvestment plan. The financing plan includes a utility-level debt issuance of $400 million. The company will routinely extend its shelf registration and ATM program, but this is not a signal of near-term issuance. Modest equity needs are expected to fund the expanded Great Basin project, with no meaningful ATM draws anticipated through 2030. Q: How does the updated Great Basin project scope impact the company's long-term guidance and capital expenditure forecasts?A: Justin Forsberg stated that the updated scope is not expected to have a material impact on 2026 guidance. The additional ~$600 million of CapEx for the 2028 expansion and future phases have not yet been incorporated into current long-term outlook. These updates will be folded into the annual 5-year planning refresh in February, which is expected to increase CapEx and rate-base forecasts given continued economic development in northern Nevada. For the complete transcript of the earnings call, please refer to the full earnings call transcript.

Southwest Gas (SWX) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.45 per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.47 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.53 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of -4.26%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this natural gas company would post earnings of $1.88 per share when it actually produced earnings of $1.91, delivering a surprise of +1.6%. Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates just once. Southwest Gas, which belongs to the Zacks Utility - Gas Distribution industry, posted revenues of $358.15 million for the quarter ended June 2026, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 11.91%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $1.12 billion. The company has not been able to beat consensus revenue estimates over the last four quarters. The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call. Southwest Gas shares have added about 11.3% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 13%. While Southwest Gas has underperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock? There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately. Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions. Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for Southwest Gas was favorable. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to outperform the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.17 on $319.09 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $4.27 on $1.83 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year. Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Utility - Gas Distribution is currently in the bottom 29% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1. One other stock from the broader Zacks Utilities sector, Telephone & Data Systems (TDS), is yet to report results for the quarter ended June 2026. The results are expected to be released on August 7. This parent of U.S. Cellular and TDS Telecom is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.09 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of +280%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has remained unchanged over the last 30 days. Telephone & Data Systems' revenues are expected to be $315.05 million, down 73.4% from the year-ago quarter. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Southwest Gas Corporation (SWX) : Free Stock Analysis Report Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (TDS) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Southwest Gas Holdings Inc. SWX reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of 45 cents per share, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 47 cents by 4.3%. The bottom line increased 21.6% from the year-ago quarter. Operating revenues totaled $358.2 million, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $407 million by 12%. The top line also decreased 9.6% from $396.3 million in the prior-year quarter. Southwest Gas Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Southwest Gas Corporation Quote Total operating expenses declined 17.5% year over year to $273.8 million. This was primarily due to the lower net cost of gas sold and reduced operations and maintenance expenses.Total operating income was $84.3 million, up 30.8% from $64.5 million in the year-ago quarter.Arizona System Integrity Mechanism rates became effective on April 1, supporting the recovery of eligible safety and reliability investments. In Nevada, SWX increased its requested annual revenues to roughly $74 million after incorporating additional plant investments.Total system throughput in the first six months of 2026 was 106.05 million dekatherms, down 9.1% from 116.61 million dekatherms in the year-ago period. Cash and cash equivalents amounted to $270.5 million as of June 30, 2026, compared with $576.6 million as of Dec. 31, 2025.As of June 30, 2026, long-term debt, less current maturities, amounted to $3.41 billion compared with $3.43 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025.Net cash provided by operating activities totaled $308.2 million in the first six months of 2026, compared with $417.6 million a year earlier. Capital expenditures and property additions increased to $529.1 million from $362.5 million, reflecting continued infrastructure investment. Great Basin secured binding precedent agreements for about 1 billion cubic feet (Bcf) per day of demand for its 2028 expansion. The project is now expected to require approximately $2.3 billion in capital investment and generate an annual incremental margin of $270-$300 million after it enters service.The company also has expressions of interest for an additional 1.8 Bcf, with requested in-service dates from 2029 through 2035. Southwest Gas plans to file its Federal Energy Regulatory Commission certificate application later in 2026 and expects the higher contracted demand not to delay the filing schedule Southwest Gas expects its 2026 earnings per share (EPS) in the range of $4.17-$4.32. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EPS is pegged at $4.27, higher than the mid-point of the company’s guided range.The company expects a rate base compound annual growth rate of 9.5-11.5% in the 2026-2030 period. The capital expenditure is projected at $1.25 billion for 2026, while total capital expenditure for 2026-2030 is expected to reach $6.3 billion. Southwest Gas currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Consolidated Edison ED is slated to report second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 6, after market close. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at 74 cents per share, which implies a year-over-year increase of 10.45%.ED’s long-term (three to five years) earnings growth rate is 6.32%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter sales is pinned at $3.74 billion, which suggests year-over-year growth of 4.17%.MDU Resources Group, Inc. MDU is scheduled to report second-quarter 2026 results on Aug. 6. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EPS is pegged at 8 cents, reflecting an increase of 14.29% from the prior-year figure.MDU’s long-term earnings growth rate is 5.54%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter sales is pinned at $398 million, which suggests year-over-year growth of 13.32%.PPL Corporation PPL is scheduled to report second-quarter results on Aug. 7, before the market opens. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at 35 cents per share, which implies year-over-year growth of 9.38%.PPL’s long-term earnings growth rate is 7.52%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter sales is pinned at $2.18 billion, which suggests year-over-year growth of 7.50%. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Southwest Gas Corporation (SWX) : Free Stock Analysis Report PPL Corporation (PPL) : Free Stock Analysis Report Consolidated Edison Inc (ED) : Free Stock Analysis Report MDU Resources Group, Inc. (MDU) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

ONE Gas (OGS) came out with quarterly earnings of $0.82 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $0.65 per share. This compares to earnings of $0.53 per share a year ago. These figures are adjusted for non-recurring items. This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of +26.15%. A quarter ago, it was expected that this natural gas distribution would post earnings of $2.13 per share when it actually produced earnings of $2.11, delivering a surprise of -0.94%. Over the last four quarters, the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times. ONE Gas, which belongs to the Zacks Utility - Gas Distribution industry, posted revenues of $411.64 million for the quarter ended June 2026, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6.49%. This compares to year-ago revenues of $423.74 million. The company has topped consensus revenue estimates just once over the last four quarters. The sustainability of the stock's immediate price movement based on the recently-released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management's commentary on the earnings call. ONE Gas shares have added about 1.5% since the beginning of the year versus the S&P 500's gain of 11%. While ONE Gas has underperformed the market so far this year, the question that comes to investors' minds is: what's next for the stock? There are no easy answers to this key question, but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company's earnings outlook. Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter(s), but also how these expectations have changed lately. Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near-term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions. Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried-and-tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank, which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions. Ahead of this earnings release, the estimate revisions trend for ONE Gas was mixed. While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company's just-released earnings report, the current status translates into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for the stock. So, the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and the current fiscal year change in the days ahead. The current consensus EPS estimate is $0.50 on $405.46 million in revenues for the coming quarter and $4.88 on $2.4 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year. Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well. In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank, Utility - Gas Distribution is currently in the bottom 29% of the 250 plus Zacks industries. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperform the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1. Southwest Gas (SWX), another stock in the same industry, has yet to report results for the quarter ended June 2026. The results are expected to be released on August 5. This natural gas company is expected to post quarterly earnings of $0.47 per share in its upcoming report, which represents a year-over-year change of -11.3%. The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 3% higher over the last 30 days to the current level. Southwest Gas' revenues are expected to be $406.58 million, down 63.7% from the year-ago quarter. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report ONE Gas, Inc. (OGS) : Free Stock Analysis Report Southwest Gas Corporation (SWX) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research

Atmos Energy Corporation ATO ) is scheduled to release third-quarter fiscal 2026 results on Aug 5, after market close. In the last reported quarter, the company delivered an earnings surprise of 2.97%.Let’s discuss the factors that are likely to be reflected in the upcoming quarterly results. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $1.34 per share, indicating a year-over-year increase of 15.52%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues is pinned at $1.04 billion, implying a year-over-year improvement of 23.73%.The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Total consolidated distribution throughput volumes in the fiscal third quarter is pegged at 78,000 MMcf, indicating a 3.5% year-over-year increase. Atmos Energy's fiscal third-quarter earnings are expected to have benefited from continued customer additions, fueled by strong economic and population growth across its service territories. Expanding residential and commercial demand, particularly in Texas, is expected to have supported natural gas distribution revenues in the fiscal third quarter.Higher natural gas demand is expected to have supported the company's fiscal third-quarter performance. Ongoing rate implementations and constructive regulatory mechanisms are also expected to have provided a tailwind to earnings.The company's systematic capital investments in transmission and distribution infrastructure are expected to have benefited fiscal third-quarter results. These investments likely enhanced the safety and reliability of its network while supporting earnings.However, higher operating, maintenance and compliance costs, along with commodity price volatility, remain key risks for the to-be-reported quarter. Our proven model does not predict an earnings beat for Atmos Energy this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is not the case here, as you will see below.Earnings ESP: The company’s Earnings ESP is -0.75%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.Zacks Rank: Currently, Atmos Energy carries a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. Atmos Energy Corporation price-eps-surprise | Atmos Energy Corporation Quote Investors may consider the following players from the same sector, as these also have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this reporting cycle. Duke Energy Corporation DUK is scheduled to report second-quarter results on Aug. 4 and is likely to have registered an earnings beat. It has an Earnings ESP of +0.16% and a Zacks Rank #3 at present.DUK’s long-term (three to five years) earnings growth rate is 6.76%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter EPS is pinned at $1.29, which implies a year-over-year increase of 3.20%.Southwest Gas SWX is scheduled to report second-quarter results on Aug. 5 and is likely to have come up with an earnings beat. It has an Earnings ESP of +5.64% and a Zacks Rank #2 at present.SWX’s long-term earnings growth rate is 9.89%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter EPS is pinned at 47 cents, which implies a year-over-year decrease of 11.32%.Spire SR is set to report third-quarter fiscal 2026 results on Aug 5 and is likely to have come up with an earnings beat. It has an Earnings ESP of +16.67% and a Zacks Rank #3 at present.SR’s long-term earnings growth rate is 11.17%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter fiscal sales is pinned at $397.87 million, which suggests a year-over-year decline of 5.70%. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Atmos Energy Corporation (ATO) : Free Stock Analysis Report Duke Energy Corporation (DUK) : Free Stock Analysis Report Southwest Gas Corporation (SWX) : Free Stock Analysis Report Spire Inc. (SR) : Free Stock Analysis Report This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com). Zacks Investment Research