Good day everyone, welcome to the American States Water Company Annual Meeting of Shareholders. I will now turn the call over to Anne Holloway, Chair of the Board of American States Water Company. Please go ahead.
Thank you. I'd like to welcome our shareholders to American States Water Company's 2026 annual meeting. On behalf of the board of directors and the entire management team, we're glad you've joined us today. As shareholders, you have the ability to submit questions throughout today's meeting. Please see Q&A at the bottom left-hand of the screen. Upon the completion of the business portion of the meeting, there will be a question- and- answer session where questions that have been submitted will be responded to. Please note that this meeting is being recorded. The rules of conduct for the meeting are available on the virtual meeting platform, as well as the proxy statement and annual report for your reference. With that, I'll call the business portion of this 2026 annual meeting of shareholders to order.
As a reminder, shareholders attending the virtual meeting can vote their shares online from now through the closing of the polls. See Vote Here located in the center of the screen. If you have previously voted by proxy and do not wish to change your vote, your vote will be cast as you previously instructed and no further action is required. After the polls are closed, the votes will be tabulated and preliminary voting results will be announced. I want to recognize our board members, Dr. Diana M. Bontá, Mr. Steven D. Davis, Mr. Thomas A. Eichelberger, Mr. Roger M. Ervin, Ms. Mary Ann Hopkins, Mr. C. James Levin, Ms. Caroline A. Winn, and Mr. Robert J. Sprowls. Bob is our President and Chief Executive Officer and also a director of the company. I would like to also introduce the executive officers of the company.
Eva Tang, Senior Vice President, Finance, Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer, and Corporate Secretary. Paul Rowley, Senior Vice President, Regulated Water Utility for Golden State Water Company. Christopher Connor, Senior Vice President for American States Utility Services, Inc. Gladys Farrow, Vice President, Finance, Treasurer, and Assistant Secretary for Golden State Water Company and Assistant Secretary for American States Water Company. Patrick Kubiak, Vice President, Asset Management for Golden State Water Company. Susan Miller, Vice President, Operations for American States Utility Services, Inc. Jon G. Pierotti, Vice President, Regulatory Affairs for Golden State Water Company. Sunil Pillai, Vice President, Environmental Quality for Golden State Water Company. David Schickling, Vice President, Water Operations for Golden State Water Company. Also on the line today is Brent Eastup from PricewaterhouseCoopers, the company's independent registered public accounting firm, as well as Justin Reinus of the law firm of Winston & Strawn LLP, counsel to the company.
We will now proceed to the first item of business. Ms. Tang, will you now advise us of the steps taken to call this meeting and to appoint the Inspector of Election?
Ms. Holloway, in accordance with the bylaws of the corporation, notices of the annual meeting were mailed beginning April 3, 2026 to each holder of common shares of record as of March 20, 2026, which is the record day for this meeting. I have a certified list of shareholders and copies of mailing affidavits. In addition, Broadridge Financial Solutions has been appointed by the corporation to act as the Inspector of Election for this meeting and to certify the results of the election.
Thank you, Eva. I will now call upon Wendy Shiba, representing Broadridge Financial Solutions for her report as the inspector of election. Wendy Shiba, do you have a count of the shares represented here today?
Yes, Ms. Holloway. As of the record date of March 20, 2026, there were outstanding 39,192,544 common shares, with each share entitled to one vote. From the proxies received and tabulated through the close of business yesterday, there are represented at this annual meeting of shareholders 35,231,606 shares or 89.9% of those outstanding and eligible to vote. Accordingly, I declare the existence of a quorum.
This morning, I'm reporting preliminary results on four proposals for which votes were solicited. The final results of the voting reflecting all proxies received through the close of this meeting and any votes cast during the meeting will be included in the final report of the Inspector of Election and in a current report on Form 8-K to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
As to the first proposal, namely the election of three Class III directors, I am pleased to note that in accordance with the bylaws of the company, Mr. Thomas Eichelberger, Mr. Roger Ervin, and Mr. C. James Levin have been nominated to serve as Class III directors of American States Water Company. Having received no prior notice of any further nominations in accordance with the company's bylaws, nominations for the election of directors are now closed. Having received no request to exercise cumulative voting rights, Ms. Shiba, would you please report the results of the voting for the nominees?
Ms. Holloway, I am pleased to report that with regard to the election of three Class III directors to serve until the annual meeting of shareholders in 2029 or until their successors are elected and qualified, Mr. Thomas A. Eichelberger, Mr. Roger M. Ervin, and Mr. C. James Levin have received the highest number of affirmative votes entitled to vote at the meeting. These nominees received an average of 97.5% of the affirmative votes.
Thank you. Based on the vote of shareholders and the results provided by the Inspector of Election, the shareholders have elected the three nominees as Class III directors. Our congratulations to Tom, Roger, and Jim. The second item of business concerns the proposal to approve the 2026 Stock Incentive Plan. Proposal two must be approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of our common shares represented and voting in person or by proxy, provided that the shares voting affirmatively also constitute at least a majority of the required quorum at the meeting. Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the effect of a vote against the proposal. Ms. Shiba, would you please report the results of the voting for proposal number two?
Ms. Holloway, I am pleased to report that proposal two to approve the 2026 Stock Incentive Plan has been approved.
Thank you. The third item of business concerns the proposal to hold an advisory vote to approve the compensation of our named executive officers. Proposal three must be approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of our common shares represented and voting in person or by proxy, provided that the shares voting affirmatively also constitute at least a majority of the required quorum at the meeting. Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the effect of a vote against the proposal. Ms. Shiba, will you please report the results of the voting for proposal number three?
Ms. Holloway, I'm pleased to report that proposal three, an advisory vote to approve the compensation of your named executive officers, has been approved.
Thank you. The fourth item of business is to ratify the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the company's independent registered public accounting firm for 2026. This proposal must be approved by an affirmative vote of a majority of our common shares represented and voting in person or by proxy, provided that the shares voting affirmatively also constitute at least a majority of the required quorum at the meeting. Abstentions on this proposal will have the effect of a vote against this proposal. Brokers are authorized to vote on this proposal unless you instruct otherwise. Ms. Shiba, will you please report the results of the voting for proposal number four?
Ms. Holloway, I am pleased to report that proposal four, the appointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP as the company's independent registered public accounting firm for 2026 has been ratified.
Thank you. Now that everyone has had the opportunity to vote, I declare that the polls for American States Water Company's 2026 annual meeting of shareholders are now closed. There being no further business that has properly been brought before the shareholders, the business portion of this annual meeting is now concluded. At this time, I would like to turn the program over to Mr. Sprowls, who will provide some commentary and then take any questions.
Thank you, Anne. Before I begin with my comments on the company, let me first remind everyone that certain of my comments may contain forward-looking statements intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Please review a description of the company's risks and uncertainties in our most recent Form 10-K and Form 10-Q on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. I'd like to share an update on the company's recent performance, as well as provide a look ahead. 2025 was a year of accomplishments and continued progress in positioning the company for growth and stability.
We achieved a 10.9% increase in earnings per share in 2025 over 2024's adjusted earnings per share, received two positive general rate case decisions, continued to significantly invest in our regulated utilities infrastructure, expanded our regulated water utility operations to serve new areas in California, grew earnings at our contracted services business, which currently serves 13 military bases in nine states, and increased the dividend once again. Our consolidated return on equity was 13.3% for 2025, despite a 15.9% increase in our average consolidated equity balance compared to 2024. Some of the increase in the consolidated equity balance was due to issuance of equity under our at-the-market offering program. The 13.3% achieved return on equity compares very favorably to those of the other investor-owned water utilities.
As we invest in our water system capital infrastructure under subsidiary Golden State Water Company, we grow our water utility rate base. The 2026 CPUC authorized average water rate base has grown at a five-year compound annual growth rate of 11.3% since 2021. With a clear focus on growth and increasing our footprint, we've continued to expand Golden State Water's utility operations in three areas of California, including two new service areas approved by the California Public Utilities Commission and the proposed acquisition of an already existing water system, all of which are expected to add thousands of customer connections. We increased our quarterly dividend by 8.3% in 2025. As a result, we have increased our calendar year dividend for the 71st consecutive year.
Our quarterly dividend rate has grown at a compound annual growth rate of 8.5% over the last five years. We continue to exceed our policy goal of achieving a compound annual growth rate in the dividend of more than 7% over the long term. We maintained our strong credit ratings from Standard & Poor's of A stable for American States Water Company and A+ stable for Golden State Water Company, some of the highest credit ratings in the water utility industry. Our conservation and sustainability efforts have paid off. Customers at Golden State Water have decreased water usage per customer by 38.1% since 2007, and 47% of the electric supply for subsidiary Bear Valley Electric Service comes from renewable sources.
In addition, due to our concerted efforts to procure more renewable power for Golden State Water's operations, we have significantly reduced our scope one and two market-based greenhouse gas emissions on the way toward our 60% reduction goal by 2035 as compared to 2020. Our regulated utility spending with diverse suppliers was 30.8% during the year. In addition, as long-term shareholders, you've experienced a 10-year compound annual return on American States Water Company's stock of 7.7%. In 2025, we received two recognitions. The first was TIME's Best Midsize Companies 2025. Companies are ranked by revenue growth, employee satisfaction, and sustainability transparency. We were one of only two investor-owned water utilities on the list. Secondly, we are the only water utility included in Barron's 100 most sustainable companies for 2025.
Companies were scored across 230 environmental, social, and governance performance indicators from workplace diversity to greenhouse gas emissions. As we look at 2026, we're off to a strong start. First quarter 2026 reported earnings per share increased 8.6% over reported earnings for the first quarter of 2025. All three of our operating business segments performed well and delivered YoY increases in reported earnings per share. Our regulated utilities are on pace to invest a combined $185 million-$225 million in infrastructure this year. We filed a new electric general rate case at Bear Valley Electric Service in January, covering 2027 through 2030. We are poised to file a new water general rate case at Golden State Water in July, covering 2028 through 2030.
Our cost of capital application for Golden State Water was deferred for another year. Golden State Water's authorized return on equity remains at 10.06%, and its authorized capital structure is 57% equity and 43% debt. In addition, we continue to pursue new military base contracts at our contracted services subsidiary, American States Utility Services. American States Water continues to provide investors with a stable, long-term investment.
We are committed to disciplined financial management as well as these core strategies, providing excellent customer service and reliability with a focus on our customers, growing our regulated water and electric utility businesses through needed infrastructure replacement, further growing our water utility business through customer acquisition, improving the efficiency of current operations at all business segments, employing management systems to conserve water and energy resources, purchasing goods and services from diverse vendors, pursuing timely regulatory filings for cost recovery, growing the contracted services business through additional military base privatizations and by developing significant opportunities for new construction work on the bases we currently serve, meeting our shareholder expectations, and continuing to be one of the leaders in the industry by sticking to what we do best, providing value for investors and quality service to our customers.
Lastly, we were recently recognized in Newsweek's list of most trustworthy companies in America and ranked number one in the energy and utilities industry. It's an honor to be recognized based on the views of our key stakeholders, made up of customers, investors, and employees. We appreciate your trust in us. On behalf of the board of directors and our management team, thank you for your investment in American States Water Company. The meeting is now open to questions regarding the company from shareholders, and we will pause to review your questions. Okay, we have a two-part question here. The first part of the question is: the company has expertise in military bases over the years. Are there more opportunities in this area due to geopolitics?
I thought I would turn that over to our Senior Vice President at American States Utility Services, Chris Connor.
Thank you, Bob. This is an important question given our current political environment. The Department of Defense has an interest in ensuring our military bases have the necessary infrastructure to allow the successful launching of missions to support military activities globally. We are seeing a 50% increase in the 2027 presidential budget request for military funding, and a portion of this increase is targeted for military infrastructure upgrades. We believe there is an interest by the administration to privatize more military utility systems to ensure future mission success. Thank you.
Thank you, Chris. The second part of the question is: how about private versus public acquisitions, which is more beneficial to American States? I believe the question is about whether there's ability to acquire water systems, either public water systems or private water systems. You know, the company is always looking for opportunities to grow our water footprint. With regard to which is more beneficial to American States between a private acquisition or a public acquisition, I would say they're both equally beneficial to American States, and we've been very focused on trying to add, as I said, add to our water system footprint. Ms. Holloway, there are no further questions. I will turn it back to you to conclude the meeting.
Thank you, Bob. At this time I will close the 2026 annual meeting of shareholders. Once again, thank you for participating.
That concludes our meeting today. You may now disconnect.