Duke Energy Financial Miss Estimates on Mild Summer

Duke Energy Corp, the largest U.S. power company by market value, reported a lower-than-expected quarterly revenue and profit as a milder summer hit demand and expenses rose.

The company's shares were down 1.5 percent at $81.00 before the bell on Wednesday.

Duke said demand was hurt by a below normal weather in the Carolinas and in the Midwest.

The company's income from its international energy unit was hurt by lower volumes and higher purchased power costs in Latin America.

Duke said expenses for fuel used in power generation and purchase in the regulated sector rose 6 percent, while it jumped about 14 percent in the non-regulated business.

The company, which gets nearly 87 percent of its revenue from electric utilities that charge rates set by regulators, has been trying to exit the volatile wholesale power market.

That led to the company to sell some Midwest power assets - a big chunk of its wholesale assets - to Dynegy Inc in August for $2.8 billion.

Net income attributable to Duke rose 27 percent to $1.3 billion, or $1.80 per share, in the quarter ended Sept. 30, from $1 billion, or $1.42 per share, a year earlier.

The results include the reversal of a $477 million impairment charge related to the sale of its Midwest business.

Excluding one-time items, Duke earned $1.40 per share, below the average analyst estimate of $1.52 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The Charlotte, North Carolina-based company's total operating revenue rose about 3 percent to $6.4 billion, falling short of the average analyst estimate of $7.2 billion.

Duke shares closed at $82.23 on the New York Stock Exchange. Up to Tuesday's close, the stock had risen more than 19 percent this year.

Reporting By Shubhankar Chakravorty