San Diego-based utility holding company Sempra posted a 17% drop in its first-quarter profits on Tuesday due largely to lower results from its infrastructure unit.
The company earned $801 million, or $1.26 per share, compared to $969 million, or $1.53 per share, a year ago. Revenue fell from $6.56 billion to $3.64 billion because of the falling cost of natural gas, which is passed on to utility customers without a markup.
Sempra Infrastructure, the company’s unit that develops, invests and operates clean energy infrastructure, reported a 58% fall in its quarterly earnings to $131 million from $315 million a year ago.
Earnings from Sempra’s California operations, which include San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Gas, declined from $618 million to $582 million.
But income from the company’s Texas operations grew to $183 million from $83 million a year ago.
Despite the overall lower earnings, the company expressed optimism for the full year, forecasting full-year 2024 profit per share to be between $4.52 and $4.82.
“At Sempra, we are off to a great start in 2024. We are seeing strong economic growth in our core markets with increased interest in renewables, electric vehicles, digital infrastructure and the continued electrification of the economy,” said Jeffrey W. Martin, chairman and CEO
“Our infrastructure-centered strategy has us well positioned to continue modernizing and expanding the energy grid to help meet the needs of our customers,” he said.
The company’s stock was up nearly half a point at over $73 per share in midday trading.
Sempra serves nearly 40 million customers in California, Texas and Mexico.