EXC

Valuentum Dividend Cushion Predicts Exelon’s Dividend Cut

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In its fourth-quarter earnings presentation slide deck, Exelon (EXC) announced that it would slash its quarterly dividend payout to $0.31 per share (was $0.525 per share) beginning in the second quarter of 2013 (see image below). Valuentum members were well aware of the risks of the dividend cut long before it became apparent to the market. Our July 2012 dividend report on Exelon revealed a 0.3 Dividend Cushion score, and our October 2012 dividend report revealed a -0.1 Dividend Cushion score. Any Dividend Cushion score below 1 indicates that there is significant risk with respect to the long-term sustainability of a company’s dividend. Our article, Why Dividend Growth Investing Needs to Be Forward Looking, is a must read for income investors. We update … Read more

Why Dividend Growth Investing Needs to be Forward Looking

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Shares of Exelon (click ticker for report: ) have been tumbling lately due to the possibility of a dividend cut. The utility company needs rates to increase in order to keep up its current payout. That may not occur, and CEO Chris Crane noted that the firm may have to cut its dividend in order to keep its strong credit rating standing, which is fundamental to running Exelon’s business. In the aftermath of the announcement, both Jefferies and Argus cut the ratings on the stock, but we think both firms were a bit late to the party. Inside our Valuentum Dividend Report for Exelon, we can see what we thought about Exelon on October 30. The fact that Exelon’s dividend … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending February 8

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Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending February 8. 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 3M (MMM): now $1.44 per share quarterly dividend, was $1.36. Affiliated Managers (AMG): now $0.32 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.30. Allegion (ALLE): now $0.27 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.21. Alliance Data Systems (ADS): now $0.63 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.57. Allstate (ALL): now $0.50 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.46. Amdocs (DOX): now $0.285 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.25. Archer Daniels Midland … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending February 2

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Below we provide a list of firms that raised or lowered their dividends during the week ending February 2. 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 1st Source (SRCE): now $0.22 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.20. AFLAC (AFL): now $0.52 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.45. Amtek (AME): now $0.14 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.09. Andeavor Logistics (ANDX): now $1.00 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.9852. Apartment Investment (AIV): now $0.38 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.36. AvalonBay Communities (AVB): now $1.47 per share quarterly dividend, was $1.42. … Read more

2,350-2,750 on the S&P? Could the Coronavirus Catalyze a Financial Crisis?

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Image: We think a rather modest sell-off in the market to the target range of 2,350-2,750 on the S&P 500 is rather reasonable in the wake of one of the biggest economic shocks since the Global Financial Crisis. The chart above shows how far markets have advanced since 2011, and an adjustment lower to the target range of 2,350-2,750 is rather modest in such a context and would only bring markets to late 2018 levels (note red box as the target range). The range reflects ~16x S&P 500 12-month forward earnings estimates, as of February 14, adjusted down 10% due to COVID-19. When companies like Visa talk about a couple percentage points taken off of growth rates, one knows that … Read more

We Continue to Be Big Fans of Ameresco

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Update: We first covered Ameresco in detail through an article published back in August 2020 (link here) and followed up on that work in a subsequent article published in November 2020 (link here) and provided a brief update on the firm in a piece published in January 2021 (link here). Shares of AMRC have more than doubled since we published our first article covering the name as of mid August 2021, and we think there is ample room for additional capital appreciation upside.  Image Source: Ameresco Inc – August 2021 IR Presentation By Callum Turcan Ameresco Inc (AMRC) provides its customers with an expansive slate of clean energy and energy efficiency solutions ranging from upgrades to energy infrastructure (e.g., battery storage, … Read more

VBI Ratings Not as Impressive As We Would Have Liked in 2022

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Image: How the VBI rating system has ranked equities so far this year. By Brian Nelson, CFA At Valuentum, we use the Valuentum Buying Index (VBI) to source ideas into diversified simulated newsletter portfolios, and the VBI may be most applicable to the simulated Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio, where we generally like to include ideas when they register a high VBI rating and remove them when they register a low VBI rating. We always use the VBI in a portfolio setting and never by itself. But what about the Valuentum Buying Index ratings, themselves? How did they “perform” during 2022 in one of the worst years for stock market investors in history? Well, not as spectacular as we would have … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week of May 2

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Below we provide a list of firms that raised their dividends during the week ending May 2. 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                          American International Group (AIG): now $0.45 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.40. American Water Works (AWK): now $0.8275 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.7650. Apple (AAPL): now $0.26 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.25. Apollo Global Management (APO): now $0.51 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.46. Atkore (ATKR): now $0.33 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.32. Bachem Holding AG (BCHMF): now CHF 0.85 per … Read more

NextEra Energy’s Promising Earnings Growth Outlook Underpins Dividend Growth Trajectory

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Image Source: NextEra Energy Inc – Third Quarter of 2021 IR Earnings Presentation By Callum Turcan On October 20, the electric utility firm NextEra Energy Inc (NEE) reported third quarter 2021 earnings that missed consensus top-line estimates but beat consensus bottom-line estimates. The company reaffirmed its medium-term guidance in conjunction with its earnings report. We include shares of NEE in the ESG Newsletter portfolio and continue to be huge fans of the name. NextEra Energy’s capital appreciation and dividend growth upside potential is quite substantial. Our fair value estimate for shares of NEE stands at $102 per share with room for upside, as the top end of our fair value estimate range sits at $124 per share of NextEra Energy. … Read more

Nelson: The 16 Most Important Steps To Understand The Stock Market

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A previous version of this article appeared on our website July 21, 2013. Refreshed and updated throughout, as of July 2018. By Brian Nelson, CFA After earning my MBA at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and training stock and credit analysts from large organizations over the past decade or so, I have heard just about every question (though I admit I am still surprised by many things and remain a very humble student of the markets). I’ve also spent years perfecting the discounted cash flow process for large research organizations such as Morningstar and studied under one of the most famed aggressive growth investors of all time, Richard Driehaus. My knowledge runs the gamut from value through … Read more