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Utilities dividend payout ratios

58 companies, computed from their own SEC filings. 50 of them answer differently by 20 points or more depending on which basis you divide by.

What ordinary looks like here

On the basis each company’s own filings make applicable, the median utility pays out 61.5%. Half sit between 53.1% and 74.2%. Across all 532 companies here the median is 41.9% — 19.6 points more than the site as a whole.

Which basis applies, and to how many

Not a choice — it is what each company’s filings support.

Where the bases disagree most

The same dividend, a different answer. These are the widest gaps in utilities.

Lowest payout

  1. Constellation Energy 5.2%
  2. Cheniere Energy 8.5%
  3. PG&E 10.7%
  4. Excelerate Energy 21.7%
  5. Edison International 29.1%

Highest payout

  1. Algonquin Power & Utilities 118.2%
  2. TXNM Energy 111.5%
  3. Antero Midstream 105.9%
  4. Firstenergy 100.6%
  5. Sempra 93.8%

Common questions

What is a good dividend payout ratio for a utility?

Measured on the basis its own filings support, the median here is 61.5%, with half between 53.1% and 74.2%. That is the empirical answer for this sector rather than a rule of thumb, and it is the only comparison that means anything — a figure that is ordinary in one sector is stretched in another.

Which measure should a utility be judged on?

57 of the 58 measured here are read on GAAP earnings, because that is what their filings support. Each company’s page shows every basis it can be measured on and marks the one that applies.

Where do these numbers come from?

Each company’s own annual filing, read out of SEC XBRL. Every page names the accession number its figures came from and links it to EDGAR, so any figure here can be checked against the source.

All 58 companies

What a dividend payout ratio measures, and why one threshold does not fit every sector.

TickerCompanyBasisYieldSpreadRating
OGEOGE EnergyEarnings—383.438
TRGPTarga ResourcesEarnings—118.765
AQNAlgonquin Power & UtilitiesEarnings—84.330
NFGNational Fuel GasEarnings—83.569
TXNMTXNM EnergyEarnings—83.56
FEFirstenergyEarnings—73.18
OTTROtter TailEarnings—67.160
OKEOneokEarnings—59.440
AMAntero MidstreamEarnings—58.839
SRESempraEarnings—58.79
UGIUGIEarnings—56.363
PORPortland General ElectricEarnings—54.839
HEHawaiian Electric IndustriesEarnings—54.671
WMBWilliams CompaniesEarnings—52.139
NWENorthWestern Energy GroupEarnings—48.929
AVAAvistaEarnings—48.545
PNWPinnacle West CapitalEarnings—48.144
KMIKinder MorganEarnings—46.152
AESAESEarnings—44.264
SOSouthernEarnings—44.251
EVRGEvergyEarnings—43.742
NWNNorthwest Natural HoldingEarnings—42.060
ETREntergyEarnings—41.560
WECWEC Energy GroupEarnings—40.342
DUKDuke EnergyEarnings—40.151
ESEversource EnergyEarnings—39.456
DTMDT MidstreamEarnings—38.932
BKHBlack HillsEarnings—38.648
PPLPPLEarnings—38.466
DTEDTE EnergyEarnings—37.658
XELXcel EnergyEarnings—35.350
NINisourceEarnings—35.078
DDominion EnergyEarnings—34.940
VSTVistraEarnings—33.846
HTOH2O AmericaEarnings—33.669
EDConsolidated EdisonEarnings—33.373
EXCExelonEarnings—32.870
CEGConstellation EnergyEarnings—32.579
CMSCMS EnergyEarnings—32.259
CNPCenterpoint EnergyEarnings—32.258
NRGNRG EnergyEarnings—32.245
WESWestern Midstream PartnersOCF—31.433
NEENextera EnergyEarnings—31.361
AEEAmerenEarnings—30.282
AEPAmerican Electric PowerEarnings—28.677
AWKAmerican Water WorksEarnings—27.463
AWRAmerican States WaterEarnings—25.059
WTRGEssential UtilitiesEarnings—23.767
PEGPublic Service Enterprise GroupEarnings—21.646
LNTAlliant EnergyEarnings—20.160
EEExcelerate EnergyEarnings—19.950
ATOAtmos EnergyEarnings—19.677
CPKChesapeake UtilitiesEarnings—19.269
NJRNew Jersey ResourcesEarnings—16.270
LNGCheniere EnergyEarnings—10.273
SWXSouthwest Gas HoldingsEarnings—8.780
PCGPG&EEarnings—7.577
EIXEdison InternationalEarnings—7.180