Exelon 3Q profit rises on hot summer; raises view

NEW YORK — Exelon's its third-quarter net income rose 12 percent as stifling summer heat led more people to crank up their air conditioners. The company also raised its forecast for the year Friday.

The Chicago utility company, which operates the nation's largest fleet of nuclear power plants, earned $845 million, or $1.27 per share, compared with $757 million, or $1.14 per share a year earlier.

Taking out some one-time gains and losses related to bets on energy prices, rate settlements and other items, the company earned $739 million, or $1.11 per share, compared with $633 million or 96 cents per share.

Revenue rose 22 percent to $5.29 billion.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, who typically exclude most one-time items from their estimates, had expected a profit of $1.12 per share on revenue of $4.76 billion.

For the full-year, the company expects to make an adjusted profit of $3.95 to $4.10 per share. That's up from a previous forecast of $3.80 to $4.10 per share.

Exelon Corp. serves about 5.4 million customers, operating in Illinois with its ComEd utility and in Pennsylvania with PECO.