PCG - PG&E Corporation
| Previous Close | 12.20 |
| Open | 11.00 |
| Bid | 11.45 x 3100 |
| Ask | 11.64 x 3000 |
| Day's Range | 10.96 - 11.67 |
| 52 Week Range | 5.07 - 49.42 |
| Volume | 13,075,809 |
| Avg. Volume | 8,259,275 |
| Market Cap | 6.38B |
| Beta (3Y Monthly) | 0.74 |
| PE Ratio (TTM) | N/A |
| EPS (TTM) | -16.69 |
| Earnings Date | Nov 4, 2019 - Nov 8, 2019 |
| Forward Dividend & Yield | N/A (N/A) |
| Ex-Dividend Date | 2017-09-28 |
| 1y Target Est | 17.14 |
- Bloomberg
PG&E Slumps on Creditor Plan to Mostly Wipe Out Shareholders
(Bloomberg) -- PG&E Corp. shares dropped as much as 10% after bondholders and wildfire victims teamed up to offer a competing recovery plan for the bankrupt utility that would all but wipe out its stockholders.If a judge lets the coalition’s plan go forward, PG&E could lose control of the bankruptcy and its own reorganization plan, which envisions letting its stockholders keep a significant stake.PG&E fell 77 cents to $11.43 at 12:27 p.m. in New York and traded for as little as $10.96.The bondholders -- including Elliott Management Corp. and Pacific Investment Management Co. -- and the committee representing fire victims said their new proposal includes a $24 billion settlement to pay all claims from fires blamed on PG&E’s equipment. That’s billions of dollars more than PG&E has offered to those who lost loved ones and homes in some of the most destructive fires in California history.The proposal filed on Thursday adds new complexity to the biggest utility bankruptcy in U.S. history. The creditors and wildfire victims are seeking to end the San Francisco-based company’s exclusive right to come up with a plan so they can put forth their own.It’s unusual for a bankrupt company to lose that priority, and Judge Dennis Montali rejected an earlier effort to supplant PG&E. But this time the coalition “likely has a good shot at ending the utility’s control,” said Negisa Balluku, a litigation analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. “The competing plan may more efficiently solve the case’s key objective of compensating wildfire victims,” she wrote in a new report.What Bloomberg Intelligence Says“The noteholders’ previous calls to end PG&E’s exclusivity failed in mid-August, but the court was clear afterward that it had left the door open to terminating exclusivity if PG&E’s plan isn’t credible.” -- Negisa Balluku, litigation analyst in research reportThe group’s proposal “represents a path forward that recognizes the victims’ losses and puts their interests ahead of shareholders,” Robert Julian, an attorney for the official committee representing fire victims, said in a statement.PG&E rejected the idea and affirmed support for its own proposal.“The bondholders’ plan is an attempt to pay themselves more than they are entitled to under the law,” Lynsey Paulo, a PG&E spokeswoman, said by email. “Our plan of reorganization sets forth a framework to meet PG&E’s legal obligations in full while prioritizing victims and customers.”Montali denied the previous request last month from Elliott and the other bondholders to make competing proposals, calling them “a feast for lawyers, accountants, investment bankers and others.” In that Aug. 16 decision, Montali worried rival proposals would spawn litigation fights that “have little or nothing to do with compensating victims.”October HearingUntil that August ruling, Montali hinted that he would end PG&E’s exclusive right to develop a plan to pay fire victims and the other creditors. On Friday, Montali set a hearing for Oct. 8 to decide whether to allow the new, competing proposal to go forward, rejecting a request by the official committee and bondholders for a much quicker than normal schedule.PG&E filed for bankruptcy protection in January in the face of an estimated $30 billion or more in liabilities from wildfires. Under PG&E’s reorganization plan, claims from individual wildfire victims would be capped at $8.4 billion, while insurers or insurance claim holders would get $11 billion under a settlement announced last week.The new bondholder proposal offers $28.4 billion in new money in exchange for 58.8% of the equity in the reorganized PG&E. Under an earlier proposal, creditors had offered financing in exchange for an 85% to 95% stake in the new company.A $24 billion wildfire trust fund would be set up and financed through $12 billion in cash and $12 billion in stock, according to the filing. The trust would have a 39.5% stake in PG&E. Overall, the creditor group and the trust would end up with a combined 98.3% of the equity in PG&E.The case is PG&E Corp., 19-bk-30088, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Northern District of California (San Francisco)\--With assistance from Joel Rosenblatt.To contact the reporters on this story: Mark Chediak in San Francisco at mchediak@bloomberg.net;Scott Deveau in New York at sdeveau2@bloomberg.net;Steven Church in Wilmington, Delaware at schurch3@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Doan at ldoan6@bloomberg.net, Rick GreenFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- Reuters
PRESS DIGEST- Wall Street Journal - Sept 20
The following are the top stories in the Wall Street Journal. - The committee for wildfire victims in the bankruptcy of PG&E Corp said in a court filing on Thursday it was prepared to present a $24 billion reorganization plan for the power provider. - U.S. payments startup Stripe Inc said on Thursday it is raising $250 million in its latest funding round, which values the company at $35 billion.
- Reuters
UPDATE 2-Wildfire victims in PG&E bankruptcy to present $24 bln reorganization plan
The committee for wildfire victims in the bankruptcy of PG&E Corp said in a court filing on Thursday it was prepared to present a $24 billion reorganization plan for the power provider. The committee, joined by a group of unsecured noteholders, said in the filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in San Francisco that the plan would provide for a "comprehensive settlement" of all claims against PG&E stemming from massive California wildfires in recent years that have been blamed on the company's equipment and that pushed it to seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January. San Francisco-based PG&E earlier this month filed an outline of a reorganization plan that would pay $17.9 billion for claims stemming from wildfires, including up to $8.4 billion for individual wildfire victims.
- Business Wire
PG&E Supports National Preparedness Month with Important Safety Reminders
September is National Preparedness Month and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) is reminding customers of the importance of garage door safety by practicing for an emergency event or an unexpected outage. A recent online poll of PG&E customers found that while many customers have mastered opening their garage door during a power outage, 20 percent of respondents admitted that they are unfamiliar with this safety procedure.
- Financial Times
Credit rating agencies join battle for ESG supremacy
A flurry of dealmaking has begun among firms that provide companies with environmental, social and governance ratings, fed by increasing demand for the data among investors and regulators. The sector has traditionally been dominated by index providers such as MSCI and a handful of specialist firms, such as Sustainalytics. Now Moody’s and S&P Global, two of the big three credit rating agencies, are elbowing their way in, offering separate ESG scores on companies in addition to their traditional assessments of creditworthiness.
- Barrons.com
PG&E’s Settlement Is a ‘Game Changer,’ Citi Says. Markets Aren’t So Sure.
Citigroup has upgraded PG&E stock, calling the preliminary $11 billion deal between the California utility and its insurance claim holders a “game changer.”
- Bloomberg
PG&E $11 Billion Insurance Pact Sets Up Clash With Fire Victims
(Bloomberg) -- Bankrupt California utility giant PG&E Corp. resolved a key battle by agreeing to pay $11 billion to settle insurance claims from wildfires blamed on its equipment. An even bigger struggle looms.The settlement with insurance carriers and investors puts to rest a dispute with a group holding about 85% of insurance claims PG&E faces from deadly blazes in 2017 and 2018. The coalition, which includes Seth Klarman’s Baupost Group LLC, had sought to wrest control of PG&E’s bankruptcy by presenting its own reorganization plan.PG&E shares climbed as much as 10% on news of the agreement, which still needs approval from the bankruptcy court.While the move is a step forward for PG&E, the utility faces an even more crucial negotiation with thousands of wildfire victims who lost homes, businesses or loved ones and claim they’re owed about $40 billion. PG&E has proposed capping those payouts at $8.4 billion. A spokesman for the fire victims blasted the utility’s settlement with insurance companies.“This is just a blatant move on their part to help wealthy hedge funds and Wall Street,” Patrick McCallum, co-chair of Up From the Ashes, a wildfire victims group. “They are more worried about their stock price and the hedge funds that hold their stock than the victims.”The claims for individual fire victims are pending in state and federal and court. They could take months to resolve.A PG&E spokeswoman said the settlement is “another step” toward honoring its commitments to those affected by wildfires. “We remain committed to working with the individual plaintiffs to fairly and reasonably resolve their claims and will continue to work to do so,’’ PG&E spokeswoman Lynsey Paulo said.PG&E filed for Chapter 11 in January, facing billions of dollars in liabilities from wildfires blamed on the company’s equipment that devastated parts of Northern California in 2017 and 2018. They killed more than 100 people and destroyed tens of thousands of structures.The $11 billion PG&E is agreeing to pay the insurance companies includes liabilities from the deadly 2017 Tubbs Fire that raged in California Wine Country, a utility spokeswoman said. The total settlement exceeds the $8.5 billion PG&E proposed for insurance claims in the reorganization plan it filed this week. The company now plans to file a revised plan with the bankruptcy court.The deal is apt to strengthen PG&E’s control over its bankruptcy, said Negisa Balluku, a Bloomberg Intelligence litigation analyst. “The settlement, however, leaves open questions of wildfire victim recoveries,” she said in a research note.What Bloomberg Intelligence Says“PG&E’s newly announced $11 billion settlement with a group of insurance subrogation claimants, which includes Baupost Group, likely bolsters the utility’s grip on the reorganization process.”-- Negisa Balluku, litigation analystClick here to view the researchThe group of insurance carriers and investors claim that PG&E owes them a total of $20 billion. In a statement, the group said that it “hopes this compromise will pave the way for a plan of reorganization that allows PG&E to fairly compensate all victims and emerge from Chapter 11 by the June 2020 legislative deadline.”Baupost stands to gain at least $570 million from the settlement. In November, the firm bought $1 billion in legal claims insurers held against PG&E, paying about 35 cents on the dollar, people familiar with the matter said. The settlement Friday implies a payout of roughly 55 cents on the dollar for Baupost, which is also PG&E’s third-largest shareholder.The agreement is PG&E’s second major settlement of wildfire claims. In June, the company reached a $1 billion deal with 18 towns and other local governments to settle claims from blazes in 2015, 2017 and 2018.To contact the reporters on this story: Mark Chediak in San Francisco at mchediak@bloomberg.net;Scott Deveau in New York at sdeveau2@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Lynn Doan at ldoan6@bloomberg.net, Joe Ryan, Pratish NarayananFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
- Moody's
Ruby Pipeline, LLC -- Moody's announces completion of a periodic review of ratings of Ruby Pipeline, LLC
Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") has completed a periodic review of the ratings of Ruby Pipeline, LLC and other ratings that are associated with the same analytical unit. The review was conducted through a portfolio review in which Moody's reassessed the appropriateness of the ratings in the context of the relevant principal methodology(ies), recent developments, and a comparison of the financial and operating profile to similarly rated peers. This publication does not announce a credit rating action and is not an indication of whether or not a credit rating action is likely in the near future.
- Barrons.com
PG&E Stock Jumps 10% After Claim Holders Tout $11 Billion ‘Proposed Settlement’
The California utility’s shares are up more than 6% after news that it reached an “agreement in principle” with its insurance claim holders.
- American City Business Journals
PG&E agrees to $11 billion insurance settlement over California fires
The insurance companies, seeking to cover their losses in California wildfires, originally had sought $20 billion from the utility.
- Reuters
PG&E settles wildfire claims with insurers for $11 billion
It is the second major settlement of wildfire claims by PG&E, and requires approval by the federal bankruptcy judge overseeing the utility's Chapter 11 case. PG&E said proceedings on the third and final major group of wildfire claims remain pending in federal and state courts. It said the latest settlement is related to payments made by insurers to individuals and businesses with coverage for wildfire damage.
- Reuters
UPDATE 3-PG&E settles wildfire claims with insurers for $11 bln
PG&E Corp said on Friday it has reached an $11 billion settlement to resolve most claims by insurance carriers related to 2017 and 2018 wildfires in California. It is the second major settlement of wildfire claims by PG&E, and requires approval by the federal bankruptcy judge overseeing the utility's Chapter 11 case. PG&E said proceedings on the third and final major group of wildfire claims remain pending in federal and state courts.
- MarketWatch
PG&E reaches $11 billion settlement to cover costs of California wildfires
Pacific Gas & Electric (PCG) and a group of insurers say they have reached an $11 billion settlement to cover most of the claims from the 2017 and 2018 wildfires in California. The utility said in a statement Friday the tentative agreement covers 85% of the insurance claims, including a fire that decimated the town of Paradise. A group of insurers said in a separate statement the settlement is well below the $20 billion the insurance companies had sought in bankruptcy court.
- Benzinga
PG&E Trades Higher After Reaching $11B Wildfire Settlement
PG&E Corporation (NYSE: PCG) shares are trading higher after the company reported it agreed to a settlement to resolve certain claims on the 2017 Northern California wildfires and the 2018 campfire. Investigators linked PG&E’s equipment to wildfires that killed dozens of people in recent years. PG&E says the settlement is subject to definitive documentation and approval of the Bankruptcy Court overseeing PG&E's Chapter 11 case.
- MarketWatch
PG&E's stock surges after $11 billion settlement of wildfire claims
Shares of PG&E Corp. shot up 11% in premarket trading Friday, after the San Francisco-based utility said it has reached an agreement "in principle" with 85% of insurance claims to an $11 billion settlement relating to the 2017 and 2018 wildfires. The settlement will be implemented pursuant to PG&E's Chapter 11 plan of reorganization. The company affirmed the total $14 billion equity financing commitment target for the reorganization plan. "Today's settlement is another step in doing what's right for the communities, businesses, and individuals affected by the devastating wildfires," said Chief Executive Bill Johnson. The settlement follows the $1 billion settlement reached in June with a number of local public entities. The stock has tumbled 57.5% year to date through Thursday, while the Dow Jones Utility Average has climbed 19.7% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average has gained 16.5%.
- Business Wire
In Second Major Settlement, PG&E Reaches Agreement in Principle to Resolve Insurance Subrogation Claims Relating to 2017 and 2018 Wildfires
PG&E Corporation and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (together, “PG&E”) have agreed in principle with entities representing approximately 85 percent of insurance subrogation claims to an $11 billion settlement to resolve all such claims arising from the 2017 Northern California wildfires and 2018 Camp Fire. The settlement is subject to definitive documentation and approval of the Bankruptcy Court overseeing PG&E’s Chapter 11 case.
- Investing.com
NewsBreak: PG&E Settles for $11 billion on Wildfire Claims
Investing.com - Power company Pacific Gas & Electric (NYSE:PCG) said on Friday that it had reached an $11 billion settlement with entities representing insurance claims related to wildfires in 2017 and 2018.
- American City Business Journals
Our view: S.F. shouldn't rush to flip the switch on public power
Maintaining and upgrading PG&E;'s electricity network in the city, not to mention handling everything from billing to power outages, could cost San Francisco taxpayers hundreds of millions more than expected.
- Moody's
WG Partners Acquisition, LLC -- Moody's revises WG Partners Acquisition, LLC's outlook to positive from negative, affirms B1
Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") affirmed WG Partners Acquisition, LLC's (WGP) B1 senior secured bank credit facility rating and revised the outlook to positive from negative. The rating affirmation and outlook change to positive reflects Pacific Gas & Electric Company's (PG&E) proposed plan of reorganization that incorporates PG&E assuming its power purchase agreements (PPA). PG&E's bankruptcy and the risk of PPA rejection in bankruptcy has been the primary risk constraining WGP's credit profile since two of WGP's six portfolio companies, the Three Sisters and the Five Brothers, derive cash flows from PPAs with PG&E that expire in 2020 and 2022, respectively.
- Moody's
Panoche Energy Center, LLC -- Moody's upgrades Panoche's senior secured notes to Caa1 from Caa2. Outlook revised to positive from negative
Rating Action: Moody's upgrades Panoche's senior secured notes to Caa1 from Caa2. New York, September 11, 2019 -- Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") has upgraded Panoche Energy Center, LLC's (Panoche or the Project) senior secured notes to Caa1 from Caa2. The upgrade to Caa1 from Caa2 and the outlook revision to positive reflects Pacific Gas & Electric's (PG&E) proposed plan of reorganization that incorporates PG&E assuming its power purchase agreements (PPA).
- Moody's
Crockett Cogeneration, LP -- Moody's has upgraded Crockett Cogeneration, LP's senior secured notes to Caa1 from Caa3, outlook revised to positive from negative
Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") has upgraded Crockett Cogeneration, LP's (Crockett or the Project) senior secured notes to Caa1 from Caa3. The upgrade to Caa1 and the outlook revision to positive reflects Pacific Gas & Electric Company's (PG&E) proposed plan of reorganization that incorporates PG&E assuming its power purchase agreements (PPA). PG&E's bankruptcy and the risk of PPA rejection in bankruptcy has been the primary risk constraining Crockett's credit quality since the project derives most of its operating cash flow from its PPA with PG&E and the proposed plan would ensure that PG&E honors its obligation to the project.
- Moody's
ExGen Renewables IV, LLC -- Moody's affirms ExGen Renewables IV's B2 and revises outlook to positive from negative
Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") affirmed ExGen Renewables IV's (EGR IV) B2 rating on its senior secured term loan and changed the outlook to positive from negative. EGR IV's rating affirmation and change in outlook to positive reflects Pacific Gas & Electric's (PG&E) proposed plan of reorganization that incorporates PG&E assuming its power purchase agreements (PPA). PG&E's bankruptcy and the risk of PPA rejection in bankruptcy has been a key risk constraining EGR IV's credit quality since approximately 40% of EGR IV's originally expected dividends are from the AVSR solar project and AVSR derives all of its operating cash flow from its PPA with PG&E. The proposed plan would ensure that PG&E honors its obligation to AVSR and should eventually lead to a resolution of the technical default at AVSR.
- Barrons.com
PG&E Has a Plan to Exit Bankruptcy. Now It Needs to Convince Everyone Else That It Works.
PG&E has filed a reorganization plan, and five banks say they are confident it can finance its exit from bankruptcy. Now it just needs to get a cast of hedge funds, regulators, and wildfire victims to cooperate.
- Bloomberg
PG&E’s Busy Week Offers More Heat Than Light
(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Ostensibly, a lot has happened with PG&E Corp. this week. It emerged that San Francisco Mayor London Breed had offered to buy the city’s power grid from the utility. Then, PG&E filed a reorganization plan to emerge from bankruptcy. This all seems pretty important.It hasn’t registered with the stock. Having had a day or so to absorb the late-Monday court filing and a couple of days to mull Mayor Breed’s offer, the stock trades around the $11 level it’s been at for a few weeks.That makes sense. San Francisco’s proposal is like someone showing up at your hospital bed and offering to buy the bed. The $2.5 billion being proposed wouldn’t even cover 10% of the high end of estimated liabilities PG&E faces. In return, the company would give up its network in the second-largest city (by population) in its service territory; a city that is also wealthy, growing and doesn’t face serious wildfire risk, making it relatively more valuable.Apart from the company, the bankruptcy court and PG&E’s claimants aren’t likely to be thrilled about this either. Labor isn’t. State regulators and politicians should also be wary, as removing San Francisco could leave the remaining PG&E with that delicious cocktail of higher risk premium and fewer resources (see this). If that buyout proposal looks DOA, PG&E’s reorganization plan looks more TBD. This proposes raising up to $14 billion in new equity mostly via a rights issue, with some existing shareholders attaching backstop commitments. In lieu of a detailed capital structure for the emerging entity, it came with a clutch of letters from major banks such as Barclays Plc and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. expressing confidence they could arrange tens of billions of dollars of debt and equity finance for PG&E’s exit.The most controversial aspect, and the one that renders it all a bit moot at this point, is the plan’s cap on wildfire victims’ liabilities at $17.9 billion. As it was, CreditSights analysts were estimating liabilities north of $20 billion – and that was before the bankruptcy judge ruled last month that victims of the Tubbs Fire in 2017 could seek a jury trial to determine PG&E’s potential liability. Prior to this, a finding by CalFire, the state’s Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, that PG&E’s equipment wasn’t responsible for that fire led many to assume the company was off the hook. Now it could face potentially billions more in liability.Suffice to say, with the equity backstop contingent on the $17.9 billion cap and no more big fires, and the banks’ letters expressing confidence rather than binding commitment, the current plan looks more like a placeholder.Of course, this is a negotiation, and PG&E has to signal progress with a first draft of some sort to keep control of the process. But the cap on liabilities has drawn the anger of victims’ lawyers already. This matters in particular because PG&E’s filing still expresses the possibility of gaining legislative approval early next year to issue so-called Wildfire Victim Recovery Bonds. These would securitize a portion of future profits to fund payouts, thereby enabling shareholders to take only a temporary hit to value rather than permanent dilution from straight equity issuance. However, PG&E has failed once already on this front in Sacramento. It will be all too easy for opponents to fight the next push if they can point to a plan that covers bondholders and shields equity holders to a degree but caps payouts to victims.All of which means that, for all the noise, the balance of risk hasn’t changed. PG&E still faces pressure from rival plans, especially the big equity check being dangled by the Ad-Hoc Committee of Unsecured Bondholders. The uncertainty attached to the Tubbs trial and the potential for dilution loom large. Plus, this will all play out against the backdrop of California’s current wildfire season, with the northern part of the state displaying “above normal significant fire potential” this month.Back in late June, PG&E’s stock hit a summer peak of almost $24 on hopes that a mixture of state help and securitization would shield investors. As I wrote then, however, the reality is that PG&E needs a lot of new capital, and equity tends to take the hit in that situation. Three months on, the exact path out of Chapter 11, and what that will mean for its shares – which have fallen by more than half – remains murky. Having bought the rumor over the summer, there seems little rationale for buying the news now. To contact the author of this story: Liam Denning at ldenning1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.netThis column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners.Liam Denning is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering energy, mining and commodities. He previously was editor of the Wall Street Journal's Heard on the Street column and wrote for the Financial Times' Lex column. He was also an investment banker.For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com/opinion©2019 Bloomberg L.P.
