Southwest Gas reports boost in earnings in fourth quarter
Southwest Gas Corp. posted strong earnings in the fourth quarter thanks to some help from Mother Nature and from improved infrastructure spending.
The natural-gas utility's net income was $55.3 million, or $1.20 a share, in the quarter that ended Dec. 31. That was up from $45 million, or 99 cents a share, in the same period a year earlier.
Quarterly revenue was $517.7 million, up from $468.1 million in the fourth quarter of 2010.
The results bested analyst expectations. Thomson Reuters had pegged earnings of $1 a share on revenue of $450.7 million.
Company officials attributed the gains to colder weather, cost-containment and more work for their pipeline-construction subsidiary. It contributed a record $20.9 million in net income in 2011, compared with $12.5 million in 2010, as customers "embarked on significant, multiyear infrastructure replacement programs," said Southwest Gas CEO Jeffrey Shaw in a statement.
For 2011, Southwest Gas reported net income of $112.3 million, or $2.45 a share, on $1.9 billion in revenue. That was up from $103.9 million, or $2.29 a share, on $1.8 billion in revenue in 2010.
Southwest Gas shares fell 17 cents, or 0.4 percent, Tuesday to close at $42.31 on the New York Stock Exchange.
