American States Water's 4Q Profit Falls 53 Percent

SAN DIMAS, Calif. (AP) — American States Water Co. said Thursday that fourth-quarter profit plunged by more than half, weighed down by impairment charges and compared with the year-earlier period boosted by a regulatory ruling that yielded $3.3 million in pretax income.

Net income of $2.9 million, or 16 cents per share, was down 53 percent from $6.1 million, or 35 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding items, it earned 40 cents per share for the most recent quarter.

Quarterly revenue for the period ended Dec. 31 jumped 14 percent to $84.2 million from $74 million.

Analysts expected earnings of 36 cents per share on revenue of $83.4 million, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters. Analysts typically exclude items from their estimates.

The company's most recent quarterly results included a goodwill impairment charge of $7.7 million, or 27 cents per share, at a subsidiary of the San Dimas, Calif., water company.

It said an unrealized gain on purchased power contracts increased pretax income by $788,000, or 3 cents per share, during the quarter, compared with $522,000, or 2 cents per share, a year ago.