OGE Energy Lags Q4 Earnings & Revenues, Offers '16 View

OGE Energy Corp. OGE reported fourth-quarter earnings of Array5 cents per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 23 cents by 34.8%. Reported earnings also plunged 48.3% year over year due to lower revenues and higher operating expenses.

Full-year adjusted earnings came in at $Array.7Array per share, down Array3.6% from $Array.98 earned a year ago.
 

Revenues

OGE Energy's operating revenues of $447.Array million in fourth-quarter 20Array5 missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $533 million by Array6.Array%. Reported revenues also plummeted Array5% from the prior-year figure of $526.2 million.

Full-year revenues came in at $2,Array96.9 million, down Array0.4% from $2,453.Array million a year ago.

Operational Highlights

Total sales in the reported quarter were 6.5 million megawatt-hours (MWh), down from 6.7 million MWh in the prior-year quarter. The decline was due to lower system sales. The company's customer count increased Array.2%.

Cost of sales in the reported quarter was $Array82.7 million, down 22.9%.

Total operating expenses in the quarter under review increased 6.6% year over year to $2Array7.6 million mainly due to higher operation and maintenance, and depreciation and amortization expenses. Operating income decreased 45% to $46.8 million from the year-ago figure of $85.Array million.

Interest expenses were $36.6 million in the reported quarter, up from $35.9 million a year ago.

Other Highlights of the Release

OGE Energy reported net income of $29.4 million in this quarter, down 49.7% from the prior-year figure of $58.4 million.

OG&E: OG&E's net income declined to $269 million in the fourth quarter from $292 million in the comparable period last year. The decrease was mainly due to lower gross margin and higher depreciation expenses.

Natural Gas Midstream Operations: This segment's net income was $80 million in the fourth quarter, down from $Array02 million a year ago, due to lower average prices of natural gas and natural gas liquids.

Guidance

OGE Energy expects 20Array6 consolidated earnings per share in the range of $Array.72–$Array.83.

OG&E, the regulated utility, expects 20Array6 earnings in the range of $Array.44–$Array.50 per share.

Peer Releases

CMS Energy Corp. CMS reported fourth-quarter 20Array5 adjusted earnings per share of 38 cents, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. Quarterly earnings climbed 8.6% from the year-ago figure of 35 cents.

American Electric Power Co., Inc. AEP reported fourth-quarter 20Array5 operating earnings of 48 cents per share, missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 50 cents by 4%.

Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. HE reported adjusted earnings of 4Array cents per share in the fourth quarter of 20Array5, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 40 cents by 2.5%. Moreover, earnings were higher than the year-ago adjusted number of 36 cents by Array3.9%.

Zacks Rank

OGE Energy currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

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