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Text: In this year's first quarter, we achieved consolidated earnings of $0.52 per share versus $0.38 per share during the first quarter of 2020.
That's a 37% increase or a 21% increase on an adjusted basis.
You can see from this slide that each of our three operating segments contributed to the year-over-year earnings-per-share growth.
The results of our regulated utilities were driven by CPUC-approved rate increases, while our contracted services segment performed a higher level of construction work during the quarter compared to last year.
Steve will discuss this slide in more detail.
We continue to execute on our business strategies in the quarter, provide high-quality water, wastewater and electric services to over 1 million people and make timely investment in our systems, all while keeping our unwavering commitment to reliability and safety.
Our capital investments allow us to replace and upgrade critical infrastructure as well as ensure we can meet our customers' needs for generations to come.
We also remain committed to conservation, environmental stewardship, employee safety and well-being, diversity and inclusion and sound governance practices.
While these issues have always been at the core of our company, we created an environmental, social responsibility and governance section, also known as ESG, on our website, to more clearly make our disclosures available in these areas.
The website includes our corporate social responsibility report, TCFD and SASB disclosures and other relevant documents.
We will continue to focus on our ESG commitments, which benefit our customers, suppliers, employees, broader communities and ultimately, our shareholders.
In addition to producing strong first quarter results in all of our business segments, we filed the cost of capital application for the Water segment yesterday and saw new water and electric rates go into effect starting in January, which generate additional gross margin.
And on a longer-term scale, we continue to invest in infrastructure at our regulated utilities and contracted services business to provide quality services to our customers, perform more work on the military bases we serve, compete for new military based contracts and deliver consistent dividend growth to our shareholders.
I'll touch on these in greater detail later on in the call.
Let me start with our first quarter financial results on Slide 8.
I'm pleased to report that the company had a great quarter with consolidated earnings of $0.52 per share as compared to $0.38 per share last year.
Excluding the $0.05 per share loss on an investment item from the first quarter of last year, earnings for the first quarter of 2021 increased by $0.09 per share or 20.9% as compared to last year.
For our water utility subsidiaries, Golden State Water Company, earnings were $0.33 per share as compared to $0.29 per share, as adjusted to exclude the $0.05 per share loss on investments incurred in the first quarter of last year.
The increase in earnings were due to a higher water gross margin generated from new rates authorized by the California Public Utilities Commission, partially offset by an increase in depreciation expense and property taxes.
Our Electric segment's earnings for the first quarter of 2021 were $0.07 per share as compared to $0.06 per share for the first quarter of 2020 due to an increase in electric rate and a decrease in interest expense.
Earnings from our Contracted Services segment increased $0.04 per share for the quarter.
This was due largely to an increase in construction activity as a result of timing differences of when work was performed as compared to the first quarter of last year, as well as lower expenses for legal and other outside services.
The timing differences were expected to reverse over the remainder of 2021.
We still expect the Contracted Services segment to contribute $0.45 to $0.49 per share for this year.
Our consolidated revenues for the first quarter increased by $8 million as compared to the same period in 2020.
Water revenues increased $3.6 million during the quarter, due to third year step increases for 2021 as a result of passing earnings tax.
The increase in Electric revenues was largely due to CPUC-approved rate increases effective January 1 this year, as well as an increase in usage as compared to the first quarter of 2020.
Contracted Services revenues for the quarter increased $3.8 million, largely due to an increase in construction activity, resulting from timing differences of when construction activity was performed as compared to the first quarter of last year.
In addition, there were increases in management fees due to the successful resolution of various economic price adjustments.
Turning to Slide 10.
Our water and electric supply costs were $22.6 million for the quarter, an increase of $1.3 million from the same period last year.
Any changes in supply costs for both the Water and Electric segments as compared to the adopted supply costs are tracked in balanced income.
Looking at total operating expenses other than supply costs.
Consolidated expenses increased $1.7 million as compared to the first quarter of 2020.
This was primarily due to an increase in construction costs at ASUS resulting from increased construction activity, partially offset by lower unplanned maintenance costs and the Water segment and an increasing administrative and general expense because of lower legal outside service costs.
Interest expense, net of interest income and other decreased by $2.5 million due primarily to gains on investments held for retirement benefit plan compared to losses incurred during the first quarter of last year as previously discussed.
Slide 11 shows the earnings per share bridge comparing the first quarter of 2021 with last year's first quarter.
Turning to liquidity on Slide 12.
Net cash provided by operating activity was $24.7 million as compared to $15.7 million in 2020.
This was largely due to recent improvement in cash flow from accounts receivable from utility customers, which were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic throughout 2020.
The timing of cash receipts and disbursements related to other working capital items also affected the change in net cash provided by operating activities.
Our regulated utility invested $35.8 million in company-funded capital projects during the quarter, and we estimate our full year 2021 company-funded capital expenditures to be $120 million to $135 million.
In addition, we intended to prepay the entire $28 million of Golden State Water's 9.56% notes issued in 1991 and due in 2021 later this month.
The early redemption will include a premium of 3% of par value or $840,000 if redeemed before May 15, 2022.
Golden State Water recovery redemption premiums in its embedded cost of capital was filed in the cost of capital proceedings, where the cost savings from redeeming high interest rate debt are passed down to customers.
At this time, we do not expect American States Water to issue additional equity.
I'd like to provide an update on our recent regulatory activity.
As you may know, the Water segment has an earnings test that must meet before implementing the second and third year step increases in the three-year rate cycle.
As we reported in our last call, we have timely invested in our capital projects and achieved capital spending consistent with the amount authorized by the CPUC.
As a result, rate increases are expected to generate an additional $11.1 million in the adopted water gross margin for 2021 as compared to the adopted water gross margin for 2020.
We continue to make prudent and timely capital investments.
Golden State Water filed its cost of capital application yesterday.
We requested a capital structure of 57% equity and 43% debt, which is our currently adopted capital structure, a return on equity of 10.5% and a return on rate base of 8.18%.
A final decision on this proceeding is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2021 with an effective date of January 1, 2022.
As we discussed in our prior calls, Golden State Water filed a general rate case application for all its water regions and the general office last July.
This general rate case will determine new water rates for the years 2022 through 2024.
Among other things, Golden State Water requested capital budgets of approximately $450.6 million for the three-year rate cycle and another $11.4 million of capital projects to be filed for revenue recovery through advice letters when those projects are completed.
We are pleased that the administrative law judge assigned to this rate case has clarified that Golden State Water can continue using the water revenue adjustment mechanism or WRAM, and the modified cost balancing account, also known as the MCBA, until our next general rate case application covering the years 2025 through 2027.
In February 2021, the CPUC adopted a resolution that extended the existing emergency customer protections previously established by the CPUC through June 30, 2021, including the suspension of service disconnections for nonpayment of electric utility customers in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
For water utilities, the moratorium on service disconnections was implemented in response to an order by the Governor of California, which we believe would require another action by the governor to cease the moratorium on service disconnections for our water customers.
It is expected that the CPUC will work with the governor's office to coordinate the lifting of the moratorium for water utility customers, consistent with the electric customers.
The CPUC's February resolution did extend the COVID-19-related memorandum accounts established by Golden State Water and by Bear Valley Electric Service to track incremental costs associated with complying with the resolution.
In addition, the resolution required utilities in California to file transition plans to address the eventual discontinuance of the emergency customer protections.
Golden State Water's memorandum account is being addressed in its pending water general rate case while Bear Valley Electric Service intends to include the memorandum account in its next general rate case application expected to be filed in 2022.
Golden State Water and Bear Valley Electric filed their transition plans with the PUC on April 1 this year.
Turning our attention to Slide 16.
This slide presents the growth in Golden State Water's rate base as authorized by the CPUC for 2018 through 2021.
The weighted average water rate base has grown from $752.2 million in 2018 to $980.4 million in 2021, compound annual growth rate of 9.2%.
The rate base amounts for 2021 do not include any rate recovery for advice letter projects.
Let's move on to ASUS on Slide 17.
ASUS' earnings contribution increased by $0.04 per share versus last year's first quarter to $0.12 per share, due to an overall increase in construction activity resulting from timing differences of when work was performed as compared to the first quarter of last year and lower legal fees and outside services expenses.
We reaffirm our projection that ASUS will contribute $0.45 to $0.49 per share for 2021.
Thus far, the COVID-19 pandemic has not had a material impact on ASUS' operations.
We continue to work closely with the U.S. government for contract modifications relating to potential capital upgrade work for improvement of the water and wastewater infrastructure at the military bases we serve.
In addition, completion of filings for economic price adjustments, requests for equitable adjustment, asset transfers, and contract modifications awarded for new projects provide ASUS with additional revenues and dollar margin.
The U.S. government is expected to release additional bases for bidding over the next several years.
We're actively involved in various stages of the proposal process at a number of bases currently considering privatization.
We continue to have a good relationship with the U.S. government as well as a strong history and experience in managing water and wastewater systems at bases, and believe we're well positioned to compete for these new contracts.
I'd like to turn our attention to dividends.
Each quarter, I'd like to remind everyone of our long and consistent history of dividend payments, dating back to 1931, in addition to our unbroken 66 year history of annual dividend increases, which places us in an exclusive group of companies on the New York Stock Exchange.
In the past decade, our Board of Directors has raised the dividend at a compound annual growth rate of 9.4%, in line with our dividend policy, providing a compound annual growth rate of more than 7% over the long term.

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compname reports q1 earnings per share $0.52.
q1 earnings per share $0.52.

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