Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Top 5 Integrated Utility Stocks To Own Right Now

On Jul 12, we maintained our Underperform recommendation on Itron, Inc. (ITRI) based on decline in bookings and backlog, a challenging U.S. market, muted spending in European countries and recent weakness in the Latin American residential business.

Why Reiterated?

Itron�� first-quarter 2013 adjusted earnings fell 66% year over year to 31 cents per share, while revenues dipped 22% to $448 million. The decline in revenues was mainly due to the Energy segment after the completion of several OpenWay projects in North America.

The company witnessed surprisingly weak demand trends in January/February. Though it somewhat improved in March/April, there were some regional issues. Given the weak start to the year, Itron will need contribution from new large contract wins to achieve its full-year growth target. Furthermore, the completion of the OpenWay projects is expected to impact revenues negatively in the next few quarters.

Itron�� bookings in the quarter declined to $447 million from $467 million in the preceding quarter and backlog at the end of the quarter was $1.029 billion versus $1.035 billion at the end of the fourth quarter of 2012.

Hot US Companies To Invest In Right Now: Colonial Municipal Income Trust (CMU)

MFS High Yield Municipal Trust operates as a nondiversified, closed-end management investment company. The trust invests primarily in medium and lower quality bonds and notes issued by or on behalf of state and local government units. Its portfolio primarily comprises investments in health care, tax-backed, utilities, transportation, housing, education, industrials, resource recovery, industrial, manufacturing, oil and gas, and refunded/escrowed sectors. Columbia Management Advisors, Inc. serves as the investment advisor of the trust. The trust was formerly known as Colonial Municipal Income Trust and changed its name to MFS High Yield Municipal Trust in 2007. MFS High Yield Municipal Trust was founded in 1987 and is based in Boston, Massachusetts.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Paul McWilliams]

    Marvell (MRVL) is clearly carrying a big zit on its forehead from the ongoing legal battle with Carnigie Mellon University (CMU). A jury awarded CMU damages slightly in excess of $1B, and the judge could triple that.

Top 5 Integrated Utility Stocks To Own Right Now: WPX Energy Inc (WPX)

WPX Energy, Inc. (WPX Energy), incorporated on April 19, 2011, is an independent natural gas and oil exploration and production company engaged in the exploitation and development of long-life unconventional properties. The Company focuses on exploiting its natural gas reserve base and related NGLs in the Piceance Basin of the Rocky Mountain region, and on developing its positions in the Bakken Shale oil play in North Dakota and the Marcellus Shale natural gas play in Pennsylvania. Its other areas of domestic operations include the Powder River Basin in Wyoming and the San Juan Basin in the southwestern United States. In addition, it owns a 69% controlling ownership interest in Apco Oil and Gas International, Inc. (Apco), which holds oil and gas concessions in Argentina and Colombia. As of December 31, 2010, it had proved reserves of 4,473 Bcfe, 59% of which were proved developed reserves. Average daily production as of March 31, 2011 was 1,251 MMcfe/d.

Bakken Shale

The Company acquired 89,420 net acres in the Williston Basin in North Dakota that is prospective for oil in the Bakken Shale. It acquired all of this acreage in December 2010 through the acquisition of Dakota-3 E&P Company LLC. As of December 31, 2010, it had three rigs operating on the Bakken Shale acreage. Since acquiring this acreage, the Company has drilled 10 operated wells on the Bakken Shale properties; nine Middle Bakken formation wells and one Three Forks formation well. Six of these wells have been completed and connected to sales with initial 30 day production rates ranging from 750 Boe/d to 1,100 Boe/d.

Marcellus Shale

The Company�� 99,301 net acres in the Marcellus Shale were acquired through two key transactions and additional leasing activities. In July 2010, the Company acquired 42,000 net acres in Susquehanna County in northeastern Pennsylvania. As of December 31, 2010, the Company had five rigs operating in the Marcellus Shale.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Claudia Assis]

    Top gainers among energy companies with the S&P 500 index were coal producer Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) , with shares up 3.1%, and WPX Energy Inc. (WPX) , which rose 2.7%.

  • [By Ben Levisohn]

    Iron Mountain has gained 2.6% to $26.55 at 3:05 p.m., making it the fourth-best performer in the S&P 500, ahead of WPX Energy (WPX), which has gained 2.4% to $19.94, Pinnacle West Capital (PNW), which has gained 2.3% to $53.55 and Dominion Resources (D), which has risen 2.1% to $59.85.

Top 5 Integrated Utility Stocks To Own Right Now: Cliffs Natural Resources Inc (CLV)

Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. is an international mining and natural resources company. The Company is an iron ore producer and a producer of metallurgical coal. The Company�� operations are organized according to product category and geographic location: U.S. Iron Ore, Eastern Canadian Iron Ore, North American Coal, Asia Pacific Iron Ore, Asia Pacific Coal, Latin American Iron Ore, Ferroalloys, and its Global Exploration Group. The Company operates in four segments: U.S. Iron Ore, Eastern Canadian Iron Ore, North American Coal and Asia Pacific Iron Ore. In the United States, it operates five iron ore mines in Michigan and Minnesota, five metallurgical coal mines located in West Virginia and Alabama and one thermal coal mine located in West Virginia. It also operates two iron ore mines in Eastern Canada that primarily provide iron ore to the seaborne market for Asian steel producers. Its Asia Pacific operations include two iron ore mining complexes in Western Australia, serving the Asian iron ore markets with direct-shipping fines and lump ore, and a 45% interest in a coking and thermal coal mine located in Queensland, Australia. In Latin America, it has a 30% interest in Amapa, a Brazilian iron ore project, and in Ontario, Canada, it has a chromite project in the pre-feasibility stage of exploration. On May 12, 2011, the Company completed the acquisition of Consolidated Thompson Iron Mining Limited.

U.S. Iron Ore and Eastern Canadian Iron Ore

The Company is a global iron ore producer, primarily selling production from U.S. Iron Ore to integrated steel companies in the United States and Canada, and production from Eastern Canadian Iron Ore to the seaborne market for Asian steel producers. The Company manages and operates five iron ore mines located in Michigan and Minnesota and two iron ore mines in Eastern Canada. As of December 31, 2011, the United States-based mines and one of the mines in Eastern Canada had an annual rated capacity of 38.5 million gross tons of iron or! e pellet production. The second iron ore mine that the Company manages and operates in Eastern Canada had an annual rated capacity of 8.0 million gross tons of iron ore concentrate as of December 31, 2011. During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company produced a total of 31.0 million tons of iron ore pellets at U.S. Iron Ore, including 23.7 million tons for its account and 7.3 million tons on behalf of steel company partners of the mines.

At Eastern Canadian Iron Ore, it produced a total of 6.9 million metric tons of iron ore pellets and concentrate during 2011, with concentrate production measured from the date of its acquisition of Consolidated Thompson in 2011. The Company produces various grades of iron ore pellets, including standard, fluxed and high manganese, for use in its customers��blast furnaces as part of the steelmaking process. As of December 31, 2011, it had approximately 1.2 million tons of pellets, respectively, in inventory at lower lakes or customers��facilities. During 2011, the Company sold 24.2 million tons of iron ore pellets, respectively, from its share of the production from the Company�� U.S. Iron Ore mines. Its Eastern Canadian Iron Ore revenues are derived from sales of iron ore pellets and concentrate to the seaborne market for Asian steel producers. The iron ore pellets produced by Eastern Canadian Iron Ore are sold to various customers. During 2011, the Company sold 7.4 million metric tons of iron ore pellets and concentrate, respectively, from its Eastern Canadian Iron Ore mines.

North American Coal

The Company owns and operates five metallurgical coal mines located in West Virginia and Alabama and one thermal coal mine located in West Virginia that had a rated capacity of 9.4 million tons of production annually in 2011. In 2011, the Company sold a total of 4.2 million tons. North American Coal�� metallurgical coal production is sold to global integrated steel and coke producers in Europe, Latin America and North Am! erica, an! d its thermal coal production is sold to energy companies and distributors in North America and Europe.

Asia Pacific Iron Ore

The Company�� Asia Pacific Iron Ore operations are located in Western Australia and include its wholly owned Koolyanobbing complex and its 50% interest in Cockatoo Island. Production in 2011, was 8.9 million metric tons. These two operations supply a total of three direct-shipping export products to Asia via the global seaborne trade market. Koolyanobbing produces a standard lump and fines product. Cockatoo Island produces a single premium fines product. The lump products are directly fed to blast furnaces, while the fines products are used as sinter feed. Koolyanobbing is a collective term for the operating deposits at Koolyanobbing, Mount Jackson and Windarling. There are approximately 60 miles separating the three mining areas. Cockatoo Island is located off the Kimberley coast of Western Australia, approximately 1,200 miles north of Perth Cockatoo Island produces a single high-grade iron ore product known as Cockatoo Island Premium Fines. During 2011, it sold 8.6 million metric tons of iron ore from its Western Australia mines.

The Company competes with ArcelorMittal Mines Canada, U.S. Steel Canada Inc., Alpha Natural Resources, Inc., Patriot Coal Corporation, CONSOL Energy Inc., Arch Coal, Inc., Walter Energy, Inc., Peabody Energy Corp. Anglo, BHP and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., Rio Tinto plc, Vale, BHP, Teck Resources Limited and Xstrata plc.

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Henry Nyce]

    Cliffs Natural Resources (CLV) closed at $18.55 yesterday. At that price CLV offers 10.5% per share. Originally offered at $25.00 per share, CLV can now be purchased well below the offering price. It is designed to pay distributions of 7.00% per annum ($1.75 per annum or $0.4375 per quarter) to be paid quarterly on 2/1, 5/1, 8/1 & 11/1 to holders of record on the immediately preceding 1/15, 4/15, 7/15 & 10/15 respectively.

Top 5 Integrated Utility Stocks To Own Right Now: Stream Group Ltd (SGO)

Stream Group Limited, formerly LongReach Group Limited, is an Australia-based company operating in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector. The Company is engaged in the design, integration, installation and maintenance of integrated information and communications technology based products and services to the defense, public safety and security sectors, as well as for government, telecommunications and corporate customers, both locally and internationally. The Company together with its subsidiaries is also engaged in the provision of consulting services to certain key defense organizations. In January 2013, the Company sold its C4i business. Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Jonathan Morgan]

    Saint-Gobain (SGO) dropped 3.7 percent to 36.87 euros. Morgan Stanley cut its rating on the stock to underweight, similar to a sell recommendation, from equal weight, saying it doesn�� see a recovery yet in the European building industry and the contribution from emerging markets will slow.

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