Southern Co. 4th quarter earnings up 8 percent

ATLANTA (AP) -- Southern Co. says fourth-quarter earnings rose 8 percent as the result of economic growth in the Southeast and a return to more normal seasonal weather.

Earnings rose to $414 million for the last three months of 2013, up from $383 million during the same period a year earlier.

The Atlanta-based utility released its earnings after publicly writing off $25 million in after-tax charges for the rising cost of building a coal gasification plant in Mississippi.

The company reported earnings of 47 cents per share, up from 44 cents per share last year. Excluding certain items, Southern Co. said it earned 48 cents per share. That beat Wall Street estimates by 2 cents.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2014/1/270501