Feb 27 (Reuters) - U.S. utility Edison International ( EIX )

missed adjusted profit estimates for the fourth quarter

on Thursday, hurt by higher costs and interest rates.

Sustained higher interest rates can weigh on utilities,

as they make investing in the construction and maintenance of

critical infrastructure, such as electrical grids, more

expensive.

The company, however, expects adjusted earnings per share

for the current year to be in the range of $5.94 per share to

$6.34 per share, higher than analysts' estimates of $5.68 per

share.

The new range has an incremental 44 cents from the recently

approved TKM settlement of $1.6 billion, Chief Financial Officer

Maria Rigatti said in prepared remarks.

The TKM settlement refers to the costs the utility can

recover after the Thomas Fire, Koenigstein Fire and Montecito

Mudslides from 2017.

While the company did not provide a breakdown of its

quarterly expenses, it saw a nearly 7% rise in operating

expenses from 2023, and a nearly 16% increase in interest

expenses in 2024.

The company also said that it was still undertaking a review

of the fires in California, but as of February 27 had not

determined whether its equipment was associated with the

ignition of the Eaton fire.

Its subsidiary, Southern California Edison, is facing

multiple lawsuits alleging that its equipment was involved in

the Eaton blaze, one of the major wildfires that swept across

Los Angeles last month, and the smaller Hurst fire.

The Eaton fire scorched about 14,000 acres, destroyed more

than 9,400 structures and killed 17 people. Jefferies analyst

Paul Zimbardo estimates the damage it caused would cost about

$22 billion before any settlement discounts.

The lawsuits allege that Edison was negligent for failing to

properly maintain its transmission and distribution lines, and

also seek damages for lost wages and costs to rebuild, among

other things.

The Rosemead, California-based company said that excluding

adjustments, it reported a profit of $1.05 per share, lower than

the estimates of $1.09 projected by analysts polled by LSEG.