Excelerate Energy, Inc. (EE) — payout ratio, three ways
Fiscal year ending 2025-12-31 · sector Utilities · payout ratios computed from SEC filings, not taken from a data vendor.
| Basis | Payout | Why it differs |
|---|---|---|
| GAAP earnings | 21.7% | The basis that applies. A regulated utility earns an allowed return on its rate base, and the dividend is set against that. |
| Operating cash flow | 1.8% | Closer to meaningful than free cash flow, but still before the capital programme the regulator expects the company to run. |
| Free cash flow | 2.9% | What is left after the capital programme. For a regulated utility that programme is growth into the rate base, recovered through rates and funded by debt and equity issuance by design — so this figure swings with the capex cycle and frequently goes negative. It says little about whether the dividend is affordable. |
Spread between highest and lowest: 20 percentage points. Same filings, different denominators.
Coverage rating 50 / 100 — Tight. ? Peer standing 46/50Direction 4/30Stability 0/20
GAAP earnings payout, last 4 years
| Fiscal year | Payout |
|---|---|
| 2025-12-31 | 21.7% |
| 2024-12-31 | 10.2% |
| 2023-12-31 | 2.2% |
| 2022-12-31 | 9.8% |
Coverage worsened sharply this year, 10.2% to 21.7%, after no clear trend before it. One year is not a trend, but it is worth knowing which direction the last one moved.
Among the 57 utilities companies here, 93% pay out a larger share on this basis — this is comfortable for the sector.
The arithmetic
- GAAP earnings — dividends declared per share $0.28 ÷ diluted EPS $1.28
- Operating cash flow — dividends paid $8.5m ÷ operating cash flow $461.2m
- Free cash flow — dividends paid $8.5m ÷ (operating cash flow $461.2m − capex $163.0m)
Where the figures came from
- 10-K filed 2026-02-27 · accession
0001193125-26-078407
Every one is public at sec.gov and free to check. That is the point — you should not have to take my word for any of it.
Caveats on this company
- DPS derived from dividends paid ($0.28); no per-share tag filed
Computed by an open pipeline reading SEC XBRL directly. If any number here looks wrong to you, tell me — that is more useful to me than agreement.