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Enron 1Q beats estimates
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April 17, 2001: 8:03 a.m. ET
Energy marketer says full-year 2001 EPS will also surpass forecasts
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Enron Corp., North America's biggest marketer of electricity and natural gas, reported skyrocketing revenue and first-quarter earnings Tuesday that beat Wall Street forecasts, and said it expects its 2001 earnings to meet or exceed analysts' estimates.
The Houston-based company reported earnings of $406 million, or 47 cents a share, before one-time items. That compared with $338 million, or 40 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Analysts expected the company to earn 45 cents a share, according to First Call, which tracks Wall Street analysts' estimates.
"Enron's wholesale business continues to generate outstanding results," Jeff Skilling, Enron's president and chief executive officer, said in a statement. "Transaction and volume growth are translating into increased profitability."
The company, which is involved in other businesses such as broadband telecommunications, also raised its expectations for full-year 2001 earnings per share to a range of $1.75 to $1.80 a share. Analysts expected the company to earn $1.75 a share, according to First Call.
Enron reported first-quarter revenue of $50.1 billion, compared with $13.1 billion a year earlier, a 281-percent gain. Taking into account the one-time effect of an accounting change, the company earned $425 million, or 49 cents a share, in the first quarter.
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Enron suffered some setbacks in the first quarter, including the dissolution of its video-on-demand deal with Blockbuster Inc. (BBI: Research, Estimates), the trimming of 20 percent of its broadband unit's staff and continuing payment problems with the Dabhol Power Plant in India.
The wave of bad news prompted Skilling to hold a mid-quarter conference call to soothe investor concerns after the stock dropped into the $50s, its lowest level since January 2000 and well off its high of $90.56, set last August.
Enron (ENE: Research, Estimates) shares closed Monday up $2.14 at $59.44. 
- from staff and wire reports
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