|                                                            |                                                 | Exhibit 11(a)                           
|----------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|CLECO CORPORATION                                          
|COMPUTATION OF NET INCOME PER COMMON SHARE                 
|(UNAUDITED)                                                
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 | For the three months ended September 30,
|                                                            |                                                 | 2002                                    
|                                                            | (Thousands, except share and per share amounts)
|Basic                                                       |                                                 |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Net income applicable to common stock                       | $                                36,392         |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 | ========                                
|Weighted average number of shares of common stock           |                                                 |                                         
|outstanding during the period                               | 47,033,832                                      |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 | ========                                
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Basic net income per common share                           | $              0.77                             |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 | ========                                
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Diluted                                                     |                                                 |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Net income applicable to common stock                       | $         36,392                                |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Adjustments to net income related to ESOP under the         |                                                 |                                         
|"if-converted" method:                                      |                                                 |                                         
|Add loss of deduction from net income for actual            |                                                 |                                         
|dividends paid on convertible preferred stock,              |                                                 |                                         
|net of tax                                                  | 319                                             |                                         
|Add/(Deduct) additional cash contribution required,         |                                                 |                                         
|which is equal to dividends on preferred stock              |                                                 |                                         
|less dividends paid at the common dividend rate, net of tax | (20)                                            |                                         
|Add tax benefit associated with dividends                   |                                                 |                                         
|paid on allocated common shares                             | 151                                             |                                         
|Adjusted income applicable to common stock                  | $         36,842                                |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 | ========                                
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Weighted average number of shares of common                 |                                                 |                                         
|stock outstanding during the period                         | 47,033,832                                      |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Number of equivalent common shares                          |                                                 |                                         
|attributable to ESOP                                        | 2,453,746                                       |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Common stock under stock option grants                      | 11,387                                          |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Average shares                                              | 49,498,965                                      |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 | ========                                
|                                                            |                                                 |                                         
|Diluted net income per common share                         | $                                        0.74   |                                         
|                                                            |                                                 | ========