We will also refer to non-GAAP measures, including earnings from ongoing operations. This is causing utilities across the country to increase their capital investment plans significantly to combat Mother Nature, and the same applies here at PPL. From a financial perspective, we achieved ongoing earnings of $1.81 per share, 7.1% growth from our prior-year results and in line with the midpoint of our forecast. Building off our strong year in 2025, today, we announced an updated business plan that extends our growth outlook while keeping customer affordability and our strong credit profile front and center.
For 2026, we're issuing ongoing earnings guidance of $1.90-$1.98 per share, with a midpoint of $1.94 per share, representing 7.2% growth from 2025. We're extending our 6%-8% annual EPS growth target through at least 2029, expecting the EPS CAGR through 2029 to be near the top end of that range based off of our 2025 ongoing earnings. Importantly, beyond this strong base plan, we see several identifiable upside opportunities to further enhance or extend our earnings growth over time. These include earnings from competitive transmission projects, additional transmission and distribution investments to support the significant economic development that we're seeing in both Pennsylvania and Kentucky, and additional generation needs in Kentucky.
It also includes earnings from our joint venture with Blackstone, which I'll cover in more detail in a few slides. We project capital investment needs of $23 billion from 2026 through 2029, up from $20 billion in our prior plan period. The result of these investments is an estimated rate base CAGR of about 10.3%, providing a strong foundation for predictable and durable earnings growth. In support of our expected capital expenditures, the plan reflects total equity needs of about $3 billion from 2026 to 2029.
| Metric | Period | Current guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Ongoing earnings per share | FY2026 | $1.90-$1.98, midpoint $1.94 (7.2% growth) (new) |
| Annual EPS growth target | through at least 2029 | 6%-8% through at least 2029, CAGR near top end (extended one year) |
| Capital investment plan | 2026-2029 | $23 billion (increased $3 billion) |
| Rate base CAGR | 2025-2029 | 10.3% (increased) |
| Equity needs | 2026-2029 | about $3 billion total (~$1 billion already executed, ~$2 billion remaining) (new) |
| Annual dividend growth target | plan period | 4%-6% (modified down while issuing equity) |
| Metric | YoY | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Full-year GAAP EPS | $1.59 vs $1.20 in 2024 | Driven by incremental returns on capital investments, higher transmission revenues, rider recovery, and lower O&M, partially offset by higher interest expense. |
| Full-year ongoing EPS | $1.81 vs $1.69 in 2024 (up $0.12) | Incremental returns on regulated capital investments and cost discipline, partially offset by higher interest expense from additional financing. |
| Kentucky segment (full year) | up $0.09 per share | Higher sales volumes largely due to weather, higher earnings from CapEx, and lower O&M, partially offset by interest expense. |
| Pennsylvania segment (full year) | up $0.04 per share | Higher transmission revenue, distribution rider recovery, higher sales volumes, and lower operating costs, partially offset by higher depreciation and interest expense. |
| Rhode Island segment (full year) | down $0.02 per share | Higher operating costs and other factors, partially offset by higher distribution revenue; also $0.06 below forecast due to true-ups and one-time costs. |
| Q4 Kentucky segment | up $0.02 per share | Higher sales volumes from favorable weather and higher earnings from capital investments, partially offset by higher interest expense. |
| Topic | Previous mention | Current period | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data center pipeline (PA) | 20.5 GW prior quarter | up another 23% this quarter | Growing |
| Capital plan size | $20 billion (2025-2028) | $23 billion (2026-2029) | Expanding |
| Blackstone JV | advancing, no contracts signed | no earnings assumed in plan, but potential back-end upside; turbines and multi-GW land parcels progressing | Advancing |
| Kentucky load forecast | 2.8 GW prior quarter (different mix) | 2.8 GW probability-weighted with ~2.5 GW more gross projects in queue | Growing underneath |
| Equity funding | forwards executed in 2025 | ~$1 billion executed, ~$2 billion remaining of ~$3 billion need | De-risked |