Aug 1 (Reuters) - Utility firm Southern Co ( SO ) topped

Wall Street profit estimates on Thursday, helped by an uptick in

the number of customers and strong commercial demand.

Data center-driven demand has helped the S&P 500 Utilities

sector to rise about 13% this year despite high interest

rate-related expenses weighing on earnings.

The company said its data center sales rose by 17% in the

second quarter, compared with a year earlier.

Utility firms have also benefited from a heat wave in June

that raised cooling demand across the United States.

Southern Co ( SO ) said its operating revenue rose 12.4% to $6.46

billion.

The company said it added about 73,000 customers compared to

last year and residential sales rose by 11.2%.

The Atlanta-based company also saw a 7.1% rise in commercial

sales.

Southern, which had began commercial operations on its

Vogtle 4 reactor this year, said it expects third-quarter

adjusted earnings of $1.30 per share, below estimates of $1.47

per share.

The company reported an adjusted profit $1.10 per share for

the three months ended June 30, compared with the average

analyst estimate of 92 cents, according to LSEG data.