Pacific Enterprises’ Profit Surges 38% in 4th Quarter

Fourth-quarter earnings rose 38% at Pacific Enterprises, the parent of Southern California Gas Co. and Thrifty Corp. stores, the company said Thursday.

“Results benefited from the continued strong performance of our utility . . . and from higher oil prices and production realized by our oil and gas subsidiary,” Chairman James R. Ukropina said in a statement.

For the quarter ending Dec. 31, Pacific Enterprises earned $58 million, compared to $42 million during the same period in 1989. Revenue fell fractionally to $1.78 billion.

For the year, Pacific Enterprises had revenue of $6.92 billion, up 2% from 1989, but lost $43 million due to special charges announced last August.

The $275 million in after-tax charges, taken in the company’s oil and gas and retailing businesses, reflected one-time accounting changes that analysts said would strengthen earnings in the long run.

In 1989, the Los Angeles-based company earned $211 million on revenue of $6.76 billion.