Putting its stock where it business strategy is focused, Bellevue, WA-based Puget Energy Friday announced it was selling about $100 million of common stock to mutual funds managed by Franklin Advisers, based in San Mateo, CA, at a discount to the Oct. 30, 2003 price at $22/share. Net proceeds will go entirely to support Puget’s regulated combination utility, Puget Sound Energy (PSE).

Corporate officials said the sale won’t dilute overall stockholder interest because of other preferred stock buy-backs, and that the utility stock ratio should hit 40% at year-end 2003.

Funds will be used to pay for the redemption of $93.75 million of high-cost preferred stock, Puget Energy’s CEO Stephen Reynolds said. In the third quarter just ended Sept. 30, 2003 the utility redeemed its 7.75% series of preferred stock and Friday, it redeemed its 7.45% “series II” preferred stock. The rest of the proceeds — $6.25 million – will be used for general corporate purposes at PSE.

“This sale of common stock demonstrates our ongoing commitment to improve our financial strength and credit quality,” Reynolds said. “The sale will be non-dilutive to 2003, and in 2004 expected earnings-per-share because of common stock will replace high-cost preferred stock in our regulated utility capital structure. With this stock sale, we expect our utility year-end 2003 common equity ratio to exceed 40 percent.”

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