MIDLAND, Texas, Aug. 14, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Amen Properties (Nasdaq:AMEN) today announced financial results for its fiscal 2008 second quarter ended June 30, 2008. For the quarter, the Company posted a loss of $977 thousand compared to net income of $508 thousand in the same quarter last year. The significant drop in earnings from last year was caused by a loss of $1.3 million related to the discontinued operations of W Power. The Company had previously announced its intention to exit the retail electricity business due to recent volatility and increases in commodity prices. The loss posted by W Power was caused by a provision for the estimated cost of settling the unit's energy contracts and transferring its customers to another provider as well as a true-up in the estimate for unbilled revenue.
Priority Power, the Company's energy aggregation, brokering and consulting business, delivered flat revenue and slightly lower income compared to last year. This reduction in margin was caused by the Company's investments in growth for Priority, particularly the hiring of additional sales people.
The Company's investment in SFF Royalty, LLC and SFF Production, LLC generated income of $567 thousand for the quarter due to increased commodity prices. Additionally, the Company reported that it has received cash distributions from the SFF entities totaling $1.4 million through June 30, 2008.
Amen Properties is engaged in the acquisition and management of strong, profitable energy-related businesses. Priority Power, a wholly-owned subsidiary acquired in April 2006, is an energy management and consulting services firm. The Company has other energy-related holdings through its other subsidiaries, Amen Minerals and Amen Delaware.