Exelon Profit Rises

   By Lisa Beilfuss 
 

Exelon Corp. said first-quarter profit soared, amid a strong performance in its Pennsylvania business that benefited from weather and its Integrys acquisition.

The Chicago-based power company has been expanding through acquisitions, and most recently unveiled plans to buy Pepco Holdings Inc. The $6.8 billion deal, pending approval of several state regulators, is expected to close later this year and would boost Exelon's base by two million accounts to 10 million in five states and Washington, D.C., as electric utilities generally are attempting to adjust to sluggish sales.

In the latest quarter, Exelon said the $60 million Integrys deal, which it unveiled last summer, helped drive results.

Weather was a mixed factor for the company. Profit at the company's PECO segment, which provides electricity and natural gas to about 2.1 million customers in southeastern Pennsylvania, rose an adjusted 57% to $140 million as heating degree-days in the market were up 3.2% and were 18.4% above normal. Natural gas deliveries rose 4.9%.

Meanwhile, profit at the ComEd segment, which services nearly four million customers in Illinois, slid an adjusted 6.1% to $92 million as heating degree-days fell 6.2% and total electric deliveries decreased 3.5%.

In its generation segment, which includes nuclear energy and provides power to customers in Illinois, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey and New York, Exelon swung to a profit of $443 million, up from a loss of $185 million from a year-earlier. The company said the increase was primarily a result of lower cost to serve load, the Integrys acquisition, and the cancellation of the Department of Energy spent nuclear fuel disposal fees, factors which were partially offset by lower realized energy prices.

Overall, the company reported a profit of $693 million, or 80 cents a share, up from earnings of $90 million, or 10 cents a share, a year earlier. Excluding certain items, per-share profit rose to 71 cents from 62 cents.

Revenue slid 9.2% to $8.8 billion.

Analysts expected 69 cents in a share in profit and $7.1 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters.

Write to Lisa Beilfuss at [e-mail]

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