Long-Term Debt And Equity Financings

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2019

Long-Term Debt And Equity Financings [Abstract]

Ameren

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019, Ameren issued a total of 0.2 million and 0.7 million shares of common stock under its DRPlus and 401(k) plan, and received proceeds of $17 million and $54 million, respectively. In addition, in the first quarter of 2019, Ameren issued 0.8 million shares of common stock valued at $54 million upon the vesting of stock-based compensation.

In August 2019, Ameren entered into a forward sale agreement with a counterparty relating to 7.5 million shares of common stock. The forward sale agreement can be settled at Ameren’s discretion on or prior to March 31, 2021. On a settlement date or dates, if Ameren elects to physically settle the forward sale agreement, Ameren will issue shares of common stock to the counterparty at the then-applicable forward sale price. The forward sale price was initially $74.18 per share. The initial forward sale price is subject to adjustment based on a floating interest rate factor equal to the overnight bank funding rate less a spread of 75 basis points, and will be subject to decrease on certain dates specified in the forward sale agreement by specified amounts related to expected dividends on shares of the common stock during the term of the forward sale agreement. If the overnight bank funding rate is less than the spread on any day, the interest rate factor will result in a reduction of the forward sale price.

The forward sale agreement will be physically settled unless Ameren elects to settle in cash or to net share settle. At September 30, 2019, Ameren could have settled the forward sale agreement with physical delivery of 7.5 million shares of common stock to the counterparty in exchange for cash of $557 million. The forward sale agreement could also have been settled at September 30, 2019, with delivery of approximately $47 million of cash or approximately 0.6 million shares of common stock to the counterparty, if Ameren had elected to net cash or net share settle, respectively.

The forward sale agreement has been classified as an equity transaction because it is indexed to Ameren’s common stock, physical settlement is within Ameren’s control, and the other requirements necessary for equity classification were met. As a result of the equity classification, no gain or loss will be recognized within earnings due to subsequent changes in the fair value of the forward sale agreement. If the average price of Ameren’s common stock exceeds the adjusted forward sale price during a quarterly period, the forward sale agreement could have a dilutive effect on earnings per share.

In September 2019, Ameren issued $450 million of 2.50% senior unsecured notes due September 2024, with interest payable semiannually on March 15 and September 15, beginning March 15, 2020. Ameren received net proceeds of $447 million, which were used to repay outstanding short-term debt.

Ameren Missouri

In March 2019, Ameren Missouri issued $450 million of 3.50% first mortgage bonds due March 2029, with interest payable semiannually on March 15 and September 15 of each year, beginning September 15, 2019. Ameren Missouri received net proceeds of $447 million, which were used to repay outstanding short-term debt, including short-term debt that Ameren Missouri incurred in connection with the repayment of $329 million of its 6.70% senior secured notes that matured February 1, 2019.

In June and July 2019, all of the 1992 Series bonds, 1998 Series A bonds, 1998 Series B bonds, and 1998 Series C bonds issued by the Missouri Environmental Improvement and Energy Resources Authority on behalf of Ameren Missouri were subject to purchase in lieu of redemption or a mandatory tender as a result of a change in the method of determining the interest rates on the bonds. The interest rate method of each of the series of bonds, as well as Ameren Missouri’s first mortgage bonds that collaterally secure each of the series of bonds, was changed from a variable rate to a fixed rate. Upon the change in the method of determining the interest rate, the bonds, totaling $207 million, were remarketed to new investors. The following table provides additional information on the bonds:



	1992 Series	1998 Series A	1998 Series B	1998 Series C
Transaction month	June 2019	July 2019	July 2019	June 2019
Principal amount	$47	$60	$50	$50
Fixed interest rate	1.60%	2.90%	2.90%	2.75%
Variable interest rate ^(a)	2.36%	3.35%	3.34%	3.83%
Maturity	December 2022	September 2033	September 2033	September 2033
Interest payment dates	June 1 and December 1	March 1 and September 1	March 1 and September 1	March 1 and September 1
Initial interest payment date	December 2019	September 2019	September 2019	September 2019


(a)	Represents the variable interest rate of the bonds effective prior to the change in method of determining the interest rate.

In October 2019, Ameren Missouri issued $330 million of 3.25% first mortgage bonds due October 2049, with interest payable semiannually on April 1 and October 1 of each year, beginning April 1, 2020. Ameren Missouri received net proceeds of $326 million, which were used to repay $244 million of its 5.10% senior unsecured notes due October 1, 2019, with the remaining proceeds used to repay a portion of its short-term debt.

In October 2019, Ameren Missouri redeemed the remaining amount outstanding of its 5.45% first mortgage bonds due 2028 for less than $1 million.

Ameren Illinois

In 2006, Ameren Illinois purchased all $17 million of the 1993 Series B-1 bonds due 2028 issued by the Illinois Finance Authority on behalf of Ameren Illinois pursuant to a mandatory tender. Ameren Illinois’ 1993 Series B-1 senior unsecured notes due 2028 were not extinguished and remained as “Long-term debt, net” on Ameren’s and Ameren Illinois’ balance sheets. In September 2019, Ameren Illinois exchanged its bond investments for the extinguishment of its senior unsecured notes.

In September 2019, Ameren Illinois redeemed the remaining amount outstanding of its 5.70% first mortgage bonds due 2024 for less than $1 million. Additionally, in October 2019, Ameren Illinois redeemed the remaining amount outstanding of its 5.90% first mortgage bonds due 2023 for less than $1 million. Following the redemption of the 5.90% first mortgage bonds, Ameren Illinois collaterally secured its 6.70% senior secured notes due 2036 with first mortgage bonds issued under its 1992 mortgage indenture.

Indenture Provisions and Other Covenants

See Note 5 – Long-Term Debt and Equity Financings under Part II, Item 8, in the Form 10-K for a description of our indenture provisions and other covenants, as well as restrictions on the payment of dividends. At September 30, 2019, the Ameren Companies were in compliance with the provisions and covenants contained in their indentures and articles of incorporation, as applicable, and ATXI was in compliance with the provisions and covenants contained in its note purchase agreement.

Off-balance-sheet Arrangements

At September 30, 2019, none of the Ameren Companies had any significant off-balance-sheet financing arrangements, other than variable interest entities, letters of credit, and Ameren (parent) guarantee arrangements on behalf of its subsidiaries. See Note 1 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies for further detail concerning variable interest entities.