Piedmont Natural Gas posts seasonal loss

Piedmont Natural Gas posted a seasonal loss Thursday of $8.3 million, or 10 cents a share, for the third quarter.

The quarter is typically slow for the gas company because it represents the summer months through July. Piedmont lost $7.3 million in the same quarter of 2014.

For the year to date, the company has netted $151.1 million and diluted earnings per share of $1.91. That compares with $152.8 million and earnings of $1.96 through the third quarter last year.

Margin, or revenues minus the purchased cost of gas, was $111.6 million for the third quarter and up $6.7 million from the prior year. Piedmont attributed the increase to rate adjustments in Tennessee and North Carolina and customer growth.

Piedmont reaffirmed its projected earnings for 2015 of $1.82 to $1.92 a share. Its board announced a quarterly dividend on common stock of 33 cents a share.

Charlotte-headquartered Piedmont serves about 1 million customers in the Carolinas and Tennessee.

This story was originally published September 3, 2015 at 10:10 AM with the headline "Piedmont Natural Gas posts seasonal loss."