Orange County, California, said it is holding Southern California Edison (NYSE:EIX) responsible for two wildfires. The county has taken the legal route to tell its side of the story. Nothing is disclosed about the amount of damages the county is seeking.
The county, located in the southern region of California, accused SoCal Edison of acting negligently in maintaining and operating its equipment. It alleged that this inadequacy led to the two wildfires. The results? Thousands of acres burned, leading to massive forced evacuations.
The county filed two separate lawsuits for the different wildfires. In one lawsuit, Orange County claims the May 2022 Coastal fire happened because of Socal Edison. They based their allegation on the failure of the company to maintain its facilities in an area with a significant risk of wildfire.
In the other lawsuit, the county said a mishap caused by SoCal Edison and T-Mobile (NASDAQ:TMUS) equipment started the Silverado Fire in October 2020. According to the filing, the fire started after a T-Mobile lashing wire fell onto one of Edison’s overhead primary conductors. T-Mobile is named as a party in the case.
For its own part, SoCal Edison said it is cooperating with the appropriate authorities on the case.
Is Edison International a Good Stock to Buy?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Hold consensus rating on EIX stock based on three Buys, six Holds, and one Sell assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic above. Nevertheless, the average price target of $73.69 per share implies a 21.08% upside potential.
