Edison International shares tumble 14% as California wildfires rage

Hawaiian Electric Industries

08/01/2025 21:00

(Updates stock activity, adds Sempra announcement and stock
move)
** Shares of utility firm Edison International  EIX.N  tumble as
much as 13.8% to $66.70, set for fourth straight day of losses
on Weds, as wildfires rage out of control near Los Angeles
    ** EIX shares hit lowest levels since Apr and on track for
biggest one-day pct drop since COVID pandemic onset in Mar 2020
** Fast-growing fires killed at least two people on Weds,
destroying hundreds of buildings, scorching hillsides and
prompting officials to mandate some 70,000 people to evacuate
** EIX subsidiary, Southern California Edison (SCE), shut power
to over 110,000 customers to prevent damage to distribution
lines from the wildfire, co said on Weds
** SCE/EIX has not posted an incident report related to any new
fires, as it is required to do so within hours of determining
involvement with its equipment, though the lack of a filing does
not "definitively mean that the equipment was not involved,"
Jefferies analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith said in note to clients
on Weds
** "Investors remain nervous given the lack of containment with
a 'sell first, ask questions later' mindset. We remain
comfortable due to the AB 1054 liability protections that limits
the tail risks for the utilities,” he added. Jefferies has a
'buy' rating on EIX
** Meanwhile, shares of northern California utility PG&E Corp
 PCG.N  off nearly 4% on the session. Co, which in 2020 emerged
from a bankruptcy prompted by deadly blazes linked to its
equipment, was offered a $15 bln loan last month by the U.S. DOE
to bolster the power grid
** Shares of Sempra  SRE.N , which provides power and gas in the
San Diego area, down 2% on Weds. Co's SDG&E said on its website
it had cut power to nearly 9,000 customers due to fire risks
    ** EIX shares last down 11% at $66.88. They are now off ~14%
to start 2025, after 12% gain in 2024

(Lance Tupper is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed
are his own)
((lance.tupper@tr.com 1-646-279-6380))