Dominion Lowers 1Q Earnings Target on Unusually Warm Weather

Dominion Resources (NYSE:D) said earnings will take a hit in the first quarter after sales fell below expectations during what it called the warmest period in more than a century.

The unusually warm weather caused heating degree days to be 26% below normal, which will ultimately impact earnings by 10 cents to 11 cents a share, Dominion said in a statement released on Tuesday.

The Richmond, Va.-based energy producer now expects earnings per share at the bottom end of its earlier guidance of 85 cents. Analysts in a Thomson Reuters poll are looking for a profit of 94 cents.

Dominion kept fiscal 2012 earnings unchanged between $3.10 and $3.35 a share, which is in line with average estimates of $3.22.