Stock price when the opinion was issued
Utilities are her largest sector weight. Defensive, regulated earnings. Secular trend as we transition off fossil fuels. Long-term growth opportunities. Biggest asset is in Florida, a good jurisdiction. Stock came off due to hurricanes. Yield is 5.5%, grows at a small rate.
Bumps along the road, but the price has appreciated. Utilities are always levered, so as rates go up, there's more interest expense on the balance sheet and less profit hits the bottom line. Rates coming down have helped EMA's profit. Over time, expectation is that it will be the better choice. Yield is north of 5%.
A boring, stable utility. Pretty much discarded last year with people chasing the AI trend. Big move since January with the flight to safety. Outlook was upgraded from Negative to Stable. Good job reducing leverage. Florida just approved storm reparation costs from 2 hurricanes in 2024.
Fortis (FTS-T) or Emera (EMA-T)? Fortis used to be Canada’s growth utility, and is still a growing utility, but Emera seems to have taken its place. Both companies have made major acquisitions in the US. Now that this has Teco Energy, they probably have more of their earnings coming from the US then from Canada. Keep in mind that there is an interest rate risk for utilities. This gives a nice dividend of 4.5%, and they have a history of raising it regularly. Don’t have a huge percentage of your portfolio in companies that will be hurt by rising interest rates.