Summer Sale
50% off Premium Yearly
Opinions Gajan Kulasingam
Algonquin Power & Utilities CorpAQN.TOBUYJul 15, 2014
Gajan KulasingamStock price when the opinion was issued
As of Jun 15, 2026. Market Open.
You might be interested:
Thought with resurging energy prices and the thrust to renewable energy, that the sector would be better. Renewable power still worthwhile. Company and sector got over their skis. He largely sold. Bounce back won't be quick.
Brendan CaldwellTricky. He bought at $8 and sold at $17 because he didn't like their purchase of Kentucky Electric. Their business is part renewable energy, which is pretty good, and will benefit from strong tailwinds over time, but their assets are average. Their electric utility business brings some stability but little growth. They have major capex to convert utilities from coal. Also, they had debt issues, so they cut their dividend. Their crown jewel--water utility, isn't a huge business, but it's worth a lot and they might sell it. They need to reduce debt and decide whether they want to be about renewables (likely on the chopping block) or electric utility. But the latter has been depressed due to high interest rates in recent years. Take your loss and move on. Doesn't see much upside.
He was a longtime holder until the last CEO left. It was a very well-run business, but they overextended to buy assets in Spain. The structure was complicated. All the independent power producers suffered higher costs for materials as interest rates rose. AQN has new managers who did a strategic review, so AQN appears more stable. Was upgraded today. We may have seen a bottom below $7.
Strategic review right now. Don't get in right now. See how the review goes.
He owns the rate reset, preferred shares. Flat this year, but resetting at over 6%. Difficult, contractually, to cut the preferred dividend. If these shares were redeemed, you could make a significant capital gain.
If you've held on through this year's ups and downs, keep holding. For a new position, look elsewhere. Utility sector has been hard hit, as higher-for-longer interest rate expectations took hold. AQN went down more than most because of its specific issues. Utilities are recovering. It will find its footing.
Controversial pick, but sticking with the name given fundamentals of company. 2/3 regulated utilities (water) are very attractive assets. Excellent long term value. Assets very hard to replicate. May be one more dividend cut, but believes a good time to buy.
Ryan BushellFollowing its dividend cut last year, AQN underwent a strategic review and is hoping to sell its renewables division. Activist investors got involved, and the CEO took the fall and exited the company. It now has an interim CEO. The current interest rate curve has not been good to the sector at all, and most are down a lot. Analysts note also that high rates likely mean AQN will get less for any asset sale. Lots of uncertainty here is the likely reason for the decline.
Unlock Premium - Try 5i Free
Rising interest rates would be a negative headwind, but it will be for any utility and any equity stock from a valuation perspective. In a rising interest rate environment you want to look for businesses where they can grow their free cash flow and dividend in a measured pace that offsets the rising interest rate impact on valuation. He thinks this is one of those names. Have a unique 2 prong strategy where half the business is a fully regulated utility, and the other half is a contracted independent power generation business. Management has done a good job. They have indicated there is potential of up to $2 billion of incremental projects they can take on. If so, you are looking at a stock that is probably worth $12-$13 out in 2017. If you can get this between $8-$9, you will get a 12%-15% total return over 2 years. Yield of 4.2%, which he expects will be increased every year.