Sempra Energy (SRE) Q4 Earnings Beat Estimates, Revenues Up Y/Y

XEL NEE SRE CMS

Sempra Energy’s (SRE - Free Report) fourth-quarter 2020 earnings per share (EPS) came in at $1.90, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.55 by 22.6%. Moreover, the bottom line increased 22.6% from $1.55 registered in the prior-year quarter.

The year-over-year downside can be attributed to the absence of gains from the sale of assets, which the company had witnessed in the year-ago comparable period.

For 2020, the company generated adjusted EPS of $8.03, up from $6.78 at the end of 2019. The full-year bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $7.69 by 4.4%.

Total Revenues

In the quarter under review, total revenues of $3,171 million increased 7.7.% year over year on higher contributions from its Utilities (up 7%) and Energy-related (up 13.9%) businesses. The top line, moreover, exceeded the consensus mark of $2,946 million by 7.6%.

For 2020, Sempra Energy recorded revenues of $11.37 billion, up 5% from the prior year’s figure. The full-year top line also exceeded the consensus mark of $11.05 billion by 2.9%.

Segment Update

San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E): Quarterly earnings amounted to $191 million compared with the year-ago quarter’s $185 million.

Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas): In this segment, earnings totaled $79 million in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared with $204 million registered in the prior-year quarter.

Sempra Texas Utility: Earnings in this segment came in at $121 million in the reported quarter compared with $109 million in the year-ago quarter.

Sempra Mexico: The segment recorded net losses of $43 million against $39 million of earnings in the year-ago quarter.

Sempra LNG: The segment reported earnings of $113 million in the reported quarter against the year-ago quarter’s reported loss of $19 million.

Parent and Other: Quarterly loss in this division narrowed to $47 million from the year-ago quarter’s loss of $132 million.

Sempra Energy Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Financial Update

As of Dec 31, 2020, Sempra Energy’s cash and cash equivalents totaled $960 million compared with $108 million as of Dec 31, 2019.

Long-term debt and finance leases amounted to $21,781 million as of Dec 31, 2020, compared with $20,785 million at 2019-end.

Cash flow from operating activities was $2,591 million at the end of 2020, down from $3,088 million at the end of 2019.

The company’s total capital expenditures, investments and acquisitions were $5,328 million in 2020 compared with $5,505 million in 2019.

2021 Guidance

Sempra Energy reiterated its earnings guidance for 2021. The company continues to expect earnings of $7.50-$8.10 per share. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for full-year earnings stands at $8.09, which lies well above the midpoint of the projected view.

Zacks Rank

Sempra Energy currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Recent Utility Releases

Xcel Energy Inc. (XEL - Free Report) posted fourth-quarter 2020 operating earnings of 54 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.

NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2020 adjusted earnings of 40 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 39 cents by 2.6%.

CMS Energy Corp. (CMS - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2020 adjusted earnings per share of 56 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 55 cents by 1.8%.

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