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Empresas y finanzas

Duke Energy outlook tops Street, shares climb


    NEW YORK (Reuters) - Duke Energy Corp reported a 23 percent jump in quarterly earnings as electricity demand from its industrial customers rose and forecast 2011 profit above Wall Street expectations, boosting it shares.

    Net income rose to $427 million, or 32 cents per share, from $346 million, or 26 cents per share, a year earlier.

    Excluding one-time items, earnings per share were 21 cents, lagging the 23 cents that analysts had on average forecast, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

    The shortfall was largely due to the company's $40 million contribution to its charity Duke Energy Foundation, which reduced earnings per share by about 2 cents, Chief Financial Officer Lynn Good told Reuters.

    Revenue rose 11 percent to $3.45 billion, topping the $3.16 billion analysts had expected.

    The company, which announced last month that it planned to buy Progress Energy Inc in a $13.7 billion deal that would create the largest U.S. power company, said it expected 2011 earnings of $1.35 to $1.40 per share, above the $1.34 forecast by analysts.

    Shares of Duke rose 3.2 percent in premarket trading to $18.28.

    (Reporting by Matt Daily; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn, Dave Zimmerman)