CenterPoint Energy, Inc (Holding Co)

Good morning, and welcome to CenterPoint Energy's third quarter 2025 earnings conference call with senior management. During the company's prepared remarks, all participants will be in listen-only mode. There will be a question-and-answer session after management's remarks. To ask a question, press star 11 on your touchstone keypad. I will now turn the call over to Ben Vallejo, Director of Investor Relations and Corporate Planning. Mr. Vallejo?

Good morning, and welcome to CenterPoint's Q3 2025 earnings conference call. Jason Wells, our CEO, and Chris Foster, our CFO, will discuss the company's third quarter results. Management will discuss certain topics that will contain projections and other forward-looking information and statements that are currently based on management's beliefs, assumptions, and information currently available to management. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially based on various factors, as noted in our Form 10Q and other SEC filings, as well as our earnings materials. We undertake no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statement other than as required under applicable securities laws. We reported diluted earnings per share of 45 cents for the third quarter of 2025 on a GAAP basis. Management will be discussing certain non-GAAP measures on today's call. When providing guidance, we use the non-GAAP EPS measure of diluted adjusted earnings per share on a consolidated basis referred to as non-GAAP EPS. For information on our guidance methodology and reconciliation of the non-GAAP measures used in providing guidance, please refer to our earnings news release and presentation on our website. We use our website to announce material information. This call is being recorded. Information on how to access the replay can be found on our website. Now, I'd like to turn the call over to Jason.

Thank you, Ben, and good morning, everyone. On today's call, I'd like to address three key focus areas for the quarter. First, I will briefly touch on the 10-year financial plan update we introduced just weeks ago. Second, I will walk through our strong third quarter financial results. And lastly, I'll discuss our announcement from earlier this week regarding the sale of our Ohio gas LDCs. Last month, we introduced an ambitious 10-year plan focused on supporting economic development, delivering strong customer outcomes, reducing O&M through operational efficiency, and driving value for our investors. Our capital investment plan of at least $65 billion is supported by some of the fastest growing demand for energy anywhere in the country. Importantly, we also have visibility to at least $10 billion of incremental capital investment opportunities over the course of the plan. particularly in Texas, given the dramatic growth the communities we serve continue to experience. Specifically, in our Houston electric service territory, we forecast peak load demand to increase by 10 gigawatts in 2031. This forecasted growth would represent a nearly 50% increase in peak demand over the next six years. Additionally, through the middle of the next decade, we estimate the electric load demand on our system will double to approximately 42 gigawatts. This level of demand will continue to support a strong investment profile. Our capital investment plan through 2030 drives a projected rate-based CAGR of over 11% through the end of the decade and the potential for double-digit rate-based growth through the middle of the next decade. The greater Houston area is thriving, powered by what we believe is the most diverse set of growth drivers in the sector. It is not relying on any single industry, and the results speak for themselves. This growth isn't aspirational. It's already here. Notably, throughput in our Houston Electric business are up 9% year-to-date. This strong growth is anchored by our surging industrial customer class throughput, which are up over 17% quarter-over-quarter and up over 11% year-to-date. This incredible growth provides a solid foundation for our earnings guidance. Specifically, we have strong conviction in our ability to achieve non-GAAP EPS at the mid-to-high end of our 7% to 9% annual growth guidance from 2026 through 2028. and 79 percent annually thereafter through 2035. I continue to believe we have one of the most differentiated plans in the industry because of our unique combination of the diversity and pace of electric demand growth, a de-risked regulatory and financing profile, and our ability to continue investing affordably for the benefit of our customers. These attributes set us apart from our peers and enable us to continue to deliver value for all our stakeholders over the next decade and beyond. Now moving to our strong third quarter financial results. This morning, we reported non-GAAP EPS at 50 cents for the third quarter, representing a 60% increase over the same period last year. As we signaled last quarter, 2025 earnings reflect a more backend weighted profile for the year, consistent with our return to traditional capital recovery mechanisms, now that the bulk of our rate case activity is behind us. I'll let Chris cover the details in his section, but we remain well positioned to execute on our recently increased 2025 non-GAAP EPS guidance. As such, we are reiterating our full-year 2025 non-GAAP EPS guidance range of $1.75 to $1.77, which would represent 9% growth over 2024 delivered results of $1.62 per share. Additionally, we are also reiterating our 2026 non-GAAP earnings guidance we initiated a few weeks ago. As a reminder, we are targeting at least the midpoint of $1.89 to $1.91 per share. At the midpoint, this range would represent an 8% increase over the midpoint of our 2025 non-GAAP EPS guidance range. Further, we continue to expect to grow non-GAAP EPS at the mid to high end of our 7% to 9% long-term annual guidance range from 2026 through 2028, and 7% to 9% annually through 2035. As a reminder, our guidance is based on actual delivered results as we continue to execute and deliver value for our shareholders each and every year. I'd now like to discuss the recent announcement regarding the sale of our Ohio Gas LDC. Earlier this week, we announced the signing of our Ohio Gas LDC transaction, which is expected to generate approximately $2.6 billion in gross proceeds, representing a significant milestone in executing our 10-year financial plan. The strong valuation of approximately 1.9 times 2024 rate base underscores the exceptional demand for U.S. natural gas LDCs. This outcome once again demonstrates our ability to efficiently finance our growth investments, this time by recycling the transaction proceeds of a high-quality business at nearly two times book value and reallocating capital into our remaining portfolio at one times book value. The after-tax net cash proceeds of approximately $2.4 billion will be redeployed into higher growth jurisdictions to efficiently fund our capital investment plan. Importantly, the proceeds should also provide additional flexibility and funding for future incremental capital investments. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026. Chris will go into the details of the transaction, including its structure, which will allow us to more smoothly redeploy capital while maintaining a strong earnings profile. It has been a privilege to serve the customers and communities in our Ohio gas business, and we are committed to a smooth transition for our customers. This is a tremendous business with fantastic employees, and we know they will continue to provide great service to the 335,000-meter customers in Ohio. This transaction reflects our continued commitment to disciplined capital allocation as we seek to further enable growth, especially in Texas, and long-term value creation for all stakeholders. Our growing capital investment opportunities are supported by accelerating and diverse set of load growth drivers. This, coupled with our ability to efficiently finance our plan, continues to support our conviction that we have one of the most tangible long-term growth plans in the industry. And with that, I'll hand it over to Chris.