Hawaiian Electric falls after disclosing $250 mln stock offering plan (updated)

Hawaiian Electric Industries

19/09/2024 18:05

(Updates shares in paragraph 1)
       Sept 19 (Reuters) - Shares of Hawaiian Electric  HE.N 
fell 9.7% on Thursday after the parent company of Hawaii's
largest utility said it plans to sell up to $250 million worth
of shares to partly fund its portion of the Maui wildfire
settlement.
    The Honolulu-based company will conduct an "at-the-market
offering," selling shares at prevailing market prices rather
than a predetermined rate, according to a regulatory filing.
    In August, Hawaiian Electric raised going-concern doubts
after disclosing it lacked a financing plan for its share of a
more than $4 billion settlement to compensate victims of the
2023 Maui wildfires, which claimed over 100 lives.
    The company's shares have fallen about 23% this year,
including the session's losses, compared with S&P 500 Utilities
 .SPLRCU  sector's 20.3% gain.      
    Lawsuits have claimed that the utility failed to shut off
power lines despite warnings that high winds might blow them
down and spark wildfires.
    Wells Fargo, Guggenheim Securities and Barclays Capital will
handle the sale. Proceeds may also fund investments in Hawaiian
Electric's units and future acquisitions.
    Hawaiian Electric had about 110.3 million outstanding shares
as of Aug. 30, according to the filing. 
    Its price-to-earnings ratio for the next 12 months, a key
industry metric to gauge company valuations, is 6.15, compared
to the industry median of 16.08, according to LSEG data. 
    

 (Reporting by Sourasis Bose in Bengaluru: Editing by Tasim
Zahid)
 ((Sourasis.Bose@thomsonreuters.com;))