Energy Sector In Shambles, Looks to Recover But Headwinds Persist

Image Source: ConocoPhillips – November 2019 Analyst and Investor Meeting IR Presentation Executive Summary: Though raw energy resource pricing is on the rebound, the outlook for the oil and gas industry remains stressed. Global demand for oil and related refined petroleum products remains subdued due to headwinds generated by the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic. The OPEC+ oil cartel has responded by pledging to keep a significant amount of oil output off the market for an extended time. However, raw energy resource prices need to go much higher and be sustained at elevated levels before the space could become attractive from a longer-term perspective. In our view, the US upstream industry (specifically those in the shale patch) need WTI to move … Read more

Stock Market Outlook for 2021

By Valuentum Analysts February 8, 2021 2020 was one for the history books. We covered our thoughts and reflections on the past year in our “2020 Won’t Soon Be Forgotten” article (link here), and now we are looking towards the future. Global health authorities should be able to bring an end to the ongoing coronavirus (‘COVID-19’) pandemic sooner than many had expected as several vaccines have already been improved for emergency use and several others appear increasingly likely to get approved. Global vaccine distribution activities are currently underway, and this should allow the world to slowly return to pre-pandemic activities. Before then, immense stimulus measures launched primarily in developed nations should support global economic activities until the public health crisis … Read more

Nutrien Benefiting from the Strong Global Farm Economy, Shares Yield ~2.5%

Image Source: Nutrien Limited – 2020 Annual Report Executive Summary: Nutrien Limited is benefiting from the strong global farm economy. The company sells tens of millions of metric tons of potash, nitrogen, and phosphate products every year, which are key ingredients used in the production of fertilizer. With geopolitical tensions building in Eastern Europe, Nutrien is preparing to bring idle potash production capacity in Canada back online while steadily expanding its nitrogen production capabilities. Nutrien is a great free cash flow generator with a promising growth outlook, though its net debt load is rather large. The firm is focusing on deleveraging activities in the near term, which we appreciate. Shares of NTR yield ~2.5% as of this writing, and we think … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of February 24

Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending February 24. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week                          Albemarle (ALB): now $0.40 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.395. Alerus Financial Corporation (ALRS): now $0.18 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.16. AMERISAFE (AMSF): now $0.34 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.31. Assured Guaranty (AGO): now $0.28 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.25. BankUnited (BKU): now $0.27 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.25. Barclays (BCS): now $0.237 per share semi-annual dividend, was $0.105. Bay … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of November 1

Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending November 1. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week                          AbbVie (ABBV): now $1.64 per share quarterly dividend, was $1.55. Adecoagro (AGRO): now $0.174 per share semi-annual dividend, was $0.168. Amcor (AMCR): now $0.1275 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.1250. Associated Banc-Corp (ASB): now $0.23 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.22. Atlas Energy Solution (AESI): now $0.24 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.23. Balfour Beatty plc (BLFBY): now $0.0803 per share semi-annual dividend. Banco … Read more