SR: Measured Outlook Will Balance Profit Upside And Revenue Slowdown

Key Takeaways

• Strategic expansion, infrastructure investment, and regulatory support are driving diversified earnings, margin growth, and greater long-term revenue stability.
  
• Spire's emphasis on operational efficiency and energy resilience positions it as an essential player in the evolving utility landscape.
  
• Decarbonization trends, regulatory risks, and competition from alternative energy sources threaten Spire's long-term growth, profitability, and access to affordable capital.

Catalysts

Engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States.

• The acquisition of Piedmont Natural Gas's Tennessee business provides immediate scale expansion into a high-growth, utility-friendly jurisdiction, lowering overall business risk and unlocking an incremental $900 million in capital opportunities. This is expected to drive long-term revenue growth and diversify earnings.
  
• Significant and ongoing investments in infrastructure modernization and system resilience-supported by constructive regulatory frameworks and reliable cost recovery mechanisms-are growing Spire's regulated asset base, which should result in higher allowed returns and gradual increases in net income.
  
• Recent large rate case settlements and refinement of weather normalization and cost-recovery mechanisms in Missouri are set to increase annualized revenues by $210 million and reduce earnings volatility, directly supporting margin expansion and providing a more stable foundation for future earnings.
  
• Rising focus on energy reliability and resilience, especially as electric utilities face load growth and grid constraints, positions natural gas (and thus Spire) as a critical transition fuel, supporting stable customer demand and reducing the risk of revenue attrition.
  
• Enhanced operational efficiencies and disciplined O&M cost management-now running at or below inflation-are expected to improve net margins, supporting sustainable EPS and dividend growth over time.

Spire Future Earnings and Revenue Growth

Assumptions

How have these above catalysts been quantified?

• Analysts are assuming Spire's revenue will grow by 10.9% annually over the next 3 years.
• Analysts assume that profit margins will shrink from 11.3% today to 10.3% in 3 years time.
• Analysts expect earnings to reach $366.8 million (and earnings per share of $6.35) by about May 2029, up from $294.7 million today. The analysts are largely in agreement about this estimate.
• In order for the above numbers to justify the price target of the analysts, the company would need to trade at a PE ratio of 19.7x on those 2029 earnings, up from 17.2x today. This future PE is greater than the current PE for the US Gas Utilities industry at 17.2x.
• Analysts expect the number of shares outstanding to grow by 0.17% per year for the next 3 years.
• To value all of this in today's terms, we will use a discount rate of 7.11%, as per the Simply Wall St company report.

Risks

• Accelerating electrification and decarbonization trends, led by state policy and consumer adoption (e.g., electric heating and alternative energy sources), threaten to reduce long-term natural gas demand, which could limit Spire's future volume growth and reduce core revenues.
  
• Ongoing requirement for significant capital investment in aging infrastructure and newly acquired assets (e.g., Piedmont Tennessee), combined with reliance on regulatory approval for cost recovery, increases the risk of regulatory lag or disallowances-potentially compressing net margins and creating volatility in earnings and free cash flow.
  
• Exposure to shifting ESG expectations and increasing climate-related regulation could drive higher compliance and financing costs, result in more onerous carbon reduction mandates, and make access to affordable capital more difficult, weakening net income and margin expansion.
  
• Increased competition from non-gas alternatives for heating and distributed energy (e.g., heat pumps, green hydrogen), especially as the utility sector undergoes transformation, may erode Spire's customer base and limit natural gas throughput, impacting long-term revenue growth and asset utilization.
  
• Persistent volatility in natural gas prices and greater investor scrutiny regarding stranded asset risk due to decarbonization could lead to customer affordability concerns and downward pressure on valuation multiples, ultimately restraining long-term earnings and the company's ability to attract investment.

Valuation

How have all the factors above been brought together to estimate a fair value?

• The analysts have a consensus price target of $98.78 for Spire based on their expectations of its future earnings growth, profit margins and other risk factors.
• However, there is a degree of disagreement amongst analysts, with the most bullish reporting a price target of $105.0, and the most bearish reporting a price target of just $87.0.
• In order for you to agree with the analysts, you'd need to believe that by 2029, revenues will be $3.5 billion, earnings will come to $366.8 million, and it would be trading on a PE ratio of 19.7x, assuming you use a discount rate of 7.1%.
• Given the current share price of $85.76, the analyst price target of $98.78 is 13.2% higher.
• We always encourage you to reach your own conclusions though. So sense check these analyst numbers against your own assumptions and expectations based on your understanding of the business and what you believe is probable.