Allegheny Power 2015 Annual Report Download - page 18

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SHAREHOLDERRETURN
Thefollowinggraphshowsthetotalcumulativereturnfroma$100investmentonDecember31,2010inFirstEnergy’scommonstock
comparedwiththetotalcumulativereturnsofEEI’sIndexofInvestorOwnedElectricUtilityCompaniesandtheS&P500.
HOLDERSOFCOMMONSTOCK
Therewere90,633and90,346holdersof423,560,397and423,650,645sharesofFirstEnergy’scommonstockasofDecember31,
2015andJanuary31,2016,respectively.Informationregardingretainedearningsavailableforpaymentofcashdividendsisgivenin
Note11,CapitalizationoftheCombinedNotestoConsolidatedFinancialStatements.
CHANGESINANDDISAGREEMENTSWITHACCOUNTANTSONACCOUNTINGANDFINANCIALDISCLOSURE
None.
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MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSIONANDANALYSIS OF REGISTRANT ANDSUBSIDIARIES
ForwardLooking Statements: This report includes forwardlooking statements based on information currently available to
management. Suchstatements aresubject tocertainrisks anduncertainties. Thesestatements includedeclarations regarding
management's intents, beliefs and current expectations. These statements typically contain, but are not limited to, the terms
“anticipate,” “potential,” “expect,” "forecast," "target," "will," "intend," “believe,” "project," “estimate," "plan" and similar words. Forward
lookingstatements involve estimates, assumptions, known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual
results, performanceor achievements tobematerially different from any futureresults, performanceor achievements expressedor
impliedby suchforwardlookingstatements, whichmay includethefollowing:
• Thespeedandnatureof increasedcompetitionintheelectric utility industry, ingeneral, andtheretail sales market in
particular.
• Theability toexperiencegrowthintheRegulatedDistributionandRegulatedTransmissionsegments andtosuccessfully
implement our sales strategy for theCES segment.
• Theaccomplishment of our regulatory andoperational goals inconnectionwithour transmissioninvestment plan, including
but not limitedto, theproposedtransmissionasset transfer toMAIT, andtheeffectiveness of our strategy toreflect amore
regulatedbusiness profile.
• Changes in assumptions regarding economic conditions within our territories, assessment of the reliability of our
transmission system, or the availability of capital or other resources supporting identified transmission investment
opportunities.
• Theimpact of theregulatory process onthependingmattersat the federal level and in thevariousstatesin which we do
business including, but not limitedto, matters relatedtorates andtheESP IV inOhio.
• Theimpact of thefederal regulatoryprocessonFERCregulatedentities andtransactions, inparticular FERC regulationof
wholesaleenergy andcapacity markets, includingPJM markets andFERCjurisdictional wholesaletransactions FERC
regulationof costofservicerates, includingFERC OpinionNo. 531’s revisedROE methodology for FERCjurisdictional
wholesale generation and transmission utility service and FERC’s compliance and enforcement activity, including
complianceandenforcement activity relatedtoNERC’s mandatory reliability standards.
• Theuncertainties of various cost recovery andcost allocationissues resultingfrom ATSI's realignment intoPJM.
• Economic or weather conditions affectingfuturesales andmargins suchas apolar vortex or other significant weather
events, andall associatedregulatory events or actions.
• Changingenergy, capacity andcommodity market prices including, but not limitedto, coal, natural gas andoil prices, and
their availabilityand impact on marginsand asset valuations.
• Thecontinuedabilityofourregulatedutilitiestorecovertheircosts.
• Costs beinghigher thananticipatedandthesuccess of our policies tocontrol costs andtomitigatelow energy, capacity and
market prices.
• Other legislativeandregulatory changes, andrevisedenvironmental requirements, including, but not limitedto, theeffects
oftheEPA's CPP, CCR, CSAPR andMATS programs, includingour estimatedcosts of compliance, CWA wastewater
effluent limitations for power plants, andCWA 316(b) water intakeregulation.
• Theuncertainty of thetimingandamounts of thecapital expenditures that may ariseinconnectionwithany litigation,
includingNSR litigation, or potential regulatory initiatives or rulemakings (includingthat suchinitiatives or rulemakings could
result inour decisiontodeactivateor idlecertaingeneratingunits).
• Theuncertainties associatedwiththedeactivationof certainolder regulatedandcompetitivefossil units, includingthe
impactonvendorcommitmentsandasitrelatestothereliabilityofthetransmissiongrid,thetimingthereof.
• The impact of other future changes to the operational status or availability of our generatingunits and any capacity
performancecharges associatedwithunit unavailability.
• Adverseregulatory or legal decisions andoutcomes withrespect toour nuclear operations (including, but not limitedtothe
revocationor nonrenewal of necessary licenses, approvals or operatingpermits by theNRC or as aresult of theincident at
Japan's FukushimaDaiichi Nuclear Plant).
• Issuesarising from the indicationsof cracking in the shield building atDavisBesse.
• Therisks anduncertainties associatedwithlitigation, arbitration, mediationandlikeproceedings, including, but not limited
to, anysuchproceedingsrelated tovendor commitments.
• Theimpact of labor disruptions by our unionizedworkforce.
• Replacement power costs beinghigher thananticipatedor not fully hedged.
• Theability tocomply withapplicablestateandfederal reliability standards andenergy efficiency andpeak demandreduction
mandates.
• Changes incustomers' demandfor power, including, but not limitedto, changes resultingfrom theimplementationof state
andfederal energy efficiency andpeak demandreductionmandates.
• Theability toaccomplishor realizeanticipatedbenefits from strategic andfinancial goals, including, butnotlimited to,the
ability tocontinuetoreducecosts andtosuccessfully executeour financial plans designedtoimproveour credit metrics and
strengthenour balancesheet through, amongother actions, our cashflow improvement planandother proposedcapital
raisinginitiatives.
• Our ability toimproveelectric commodity margins andtheimpact of, amongother factors, theincreasedcost of fuel andfuel
transportation on such margins.