Cold winter helped Unitil achieve strong quarter
Unitil Corp. reported a strong first quarter Thursday. The utility company serving residents and businesses in Fitchburg, Ashby, Lunenburg and Townsend said its 7.9 percent increase in earnings for the first three months of 2015 was driven by higher natural gas and electric sales and margins, partially offset by higher net operating expenses.
Hampton, N.H.-based Unitil said it had net income of $13.6 million, or $0.98 per share, for the quarter, an increase of $1.0 million, or 7 cents a share, over its first quarter of 2014.
“Sustained customer growth in our natural gas business, a successful regulatory agenda and a cold New England winter resulted in a strong first quarter for our company,” Robert G. Schoenberger, Unitil’s Chairman and CEO, said in a statement. “We expect this growth to continue in the years ahead.”
Unitil said its earnings are typically higher in the first and fourth quarters, when customers use natural gas for heating purposes.
The natural gas sales margin was $38.8 million in the three months ended March 31, resulting in an increase of $2.3 million compared to the same period in 2014, Unitil said, attributing the results to higher therm unit sales in the first quarter of 2015, a growing customer base and higher distribution rates.
Meanwhile, Unitil’s electric sales margin was $21.2 million in the quarter, resulting in an increase of $2.0 million compared to the same period in 2014. That primarily reflected higher electric distribution rates.
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