Feb 25 (Reuters) - Sempra ( SRE ) on Tuesday lowered its

2025 profit forecast and gave an outlook for earnings next year

that was below Wall Street estimates, as the utility firm said

it faced challenges with high costs.

Shares of the company fell 11.7% in premarket trading as

it lowered its 2025 profit forecast to be between $4.30 per

share and $4.70 per share, from a range of $4.90 per share to

$5.25 per share earlier.

The company also issued a forecast of $4.80 to $5.30 per

share for 2026 profit, which was lower than Wall Street

expectations of $5.56 per share, according to data compiled by

LSEG.

Sempra's ( SRE ) fourth-quarter earnings also missed Wall Street

estimates due to weak demand at its Texas unit amid a milder

winter. Earnings from its Texas utilities fell about 7.5% to

$135 million compared with a year ago.

U.S. Energy Information Administration had indicated

that during the fourth quarter, the country experienced fewer

heating degree days - a metric used to assess energy demand for

space heating - compared to a year ago.

The utility firm also increased its capital expenditure plan

for 2025-29 by 16% to $56 billion to focus on regulated utility

investments in Texas and California.

Utilities are ramping up investments in projects to improve

grid resiliency amid rising demand from data centers to cater to

the artificial intelligence wave.

The San Diego, California-based firm reported an adjusted

profit of $1.50 per share for the quarter ended December 31,

missing analysts estimate of $1.60 per share.