Investment Q&A

Q: Hoping you can give some info on the debt situation for Ala. I know they took on a lot of debt to accomplish the big US acquisition but how well, in your opinion, are they dealing with their debt. I’ve heard someone suggest that they may sell some assets as a debt reduction strategy as well. In short, is their debt a serious issue or is their cash flow sufficient to cover debt repayments, dividends, etc.?

Q: I have held ALA for many years, I have some cash to deploy in the account holding ALA. All my other holdings in that account have bounced to start 2023 with ALA the glaring exception who lost steam and gave back its gains. Good time to buy the dip on ALA and worst case I get the 3.7% div for the rest of 2023? You don't seem to be huge fans based on replies to other ALA questions. I don't see a huge downside if markets continue to be shaky and with the interest rate hike cycle hopefully nearing an end.

Q: Hi - looking to add a utility to an otherwise diversified portfolio. Please rank the companies listed in terms of potential total return over the next 5 years+ and whether current valuations are presenting a good entry point?

Q: Hi

What are your thoughts on Whitecap and altagas are they both a hold for the long term.

Thanks

John

Q: Hi 5i
I think Peter has been around long enough to remember December 1999 when TRP cut its dividend from 1.20 to .80 and the stock tanked to under $10. More recently ALA made a deal to buy WGL and issued shares at $31 ( I think Caisse depot or other big guys were in for $400 million). ALA went down to around $11 and recoverd to over $28 recently. So my question is: do you see any similarities to TRP or ALA turnarounds to think that AQN ($9.50) could follow a similar chart?
Thanks, Greg

Q: Hi Peter, Ryan, and 5i Team,

More comments, a question, and a link regarding Algonquin and some historical relevance!

AQN was held in my wife's RRIF and daughter-in-law's RRSP. My feeling is that AQN will be in the 'penalty box' for quite some time, and the share price will settle around $10.00 or less. Since they're both conservative investors, I switched them to Fortis FTS, which they already held in their respective accounts. It was an easy decision. Do you agree with the thinking here?

AQN was also held in our son's TFSA, but he needed the funds recently for a house purchase. I was fortunate to sell it at around $16.00.

I didn't act soon enough with the two other accounts holding AQN for several reasons. Living in Oakville, where AQN's headquarters is located, resulted in "home town bias" - a mistake in retrospect, because I never felt comfortable with its acquisition of Kentucky Power. It was too expensive, and too much debt was taken on by Algonquin.

Finally, here's a link from 'Seeking Alpha' which outlines the fate that AQN may face when compared to a similar ill-fated and debt-ridden mistake made by AltaGas when they bought WGN. It's taken them a long time to correct their mistake, and I suspect that AQN's mistake will have similar consequences.

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4563884-altagas-vs-algonquin-discounted-utilities-with-ominous-similarities?mailingid=29958270&messageid=must_reads&serial=29958270.150190&utm_campaign=Must%2BReads%2BDecember%2B12%2C%2B2022&utm_content=seeking_alpha&utm_medium=email&utm_source=seeking_alpha&utm_term=must_reads

Thanks for your continued guidance!

Q: Is there any reason for concern about ALA,s recent drop . Should I hold as I am still up?

Q: What percent does Ala own in the mountain valley pipeline in the us. Is this delay a partial reason why the stock is down. What is your view of the stock at these prices?

Q: Do you feel both these utilities are in oversold condition based on your review of their latest quarterly results?

Q: Is there any reason for the drop with ALA.

Q: Which would be your preference between ALA.CA and KEY for a 3/5 year hold and why.

Thanks
David

Q: Please rank the above 7 stocks in terms of the negative impact a recession-based bear market would have on their price, and also on their ability to maintain their dividend.

Thank you!

Q: Which one do you recommend for a 5 year hold?

Q: I wish to take a position in two pipelines. Could you please discuss which two of the above would be the best fit or complementary to each other. This would be for a long term hold. Please feel free to add any other comments or other companies.

Thanks

David

Q: Great 5i team, There are times like this; I will need to put my cash holding to work. I kept trimming energy names in our family portfolio to under 10% and staying on the sidelines for the last few months. Your thoughts are very much appreciated with these 2 questions: which one that you would pick 3 out of these 7 energy names and which sector that you will allocate the funds? I am light in industrial and health care. Thanks for your input.

Q: In which order would you rate these stocks as the best buy right now in each sector or is there something else in each of these sectors Energy, financial, utilities that you would consider a better buy.

Q: Hi,

I assume you're still positive on ENB for the long-term? I have both ENB and AltaGas, with the latter finally coming back up to my ACB. I was thinking of selling it and consolidating the funds into ENB. Partly to reduce my holdings but also because I have more confidence in ENB.

Would you prefer diversity and keep both positions? Or is my plan ok?

Thanks,
Robert

Q: I bought enb about 3 months ago, I am up a little on it, I keep hearing that other pipelines have a better growth profile on dividend payouts, I was thinking of selling it and buying another pipleline, ala, ppl,ket etc. I also own a little ppl, both in a non tax account. What would do you think?
Thanks

Q: Hello Peter and the 5i team;

Wish you the very best for the new year.

I have ENB and PPL as my energy holdings. I am looking to add another, this time in the RRSP a/c.
Could you give me one name on the tsx , with perhaps a higher correlation to crude prices?
Regards
Rajiv

Q: hello 5i:
as an Income play, with safety of capital most important, and some growth (don't expect much), please rank the above 3 companies. And what's the difference between ACO.X and ACO.Y?
thanks
Paul L