High-yielding pipelines with gains ahead

Article Excerpt

Growth by acquisition can be risky, as newly purchased companies may develop unforeseen problems, especially in an unsettled economy. But Pembina lowered that risk with last year’s purchase of a rival in a business where it’s already a leader. Pembina will now focus on building its own projects. Veresen aims to keep expanding by adding power plants with long-term contracts already in place. PEMBINA PIPELINE $34.42 (Toronto symbol PPL; Shares outstanding: 313.0 million; Market cap: $10.8 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Div. yield: 4.9%; www.pembina.com) owns pipelines that carry half of Alberta’s conventional oil, 30% of Western Canada’s natural gas liquids (NGLs) and almost all of B.C.’s conventional oil. In the quarter ended September 30, 2013, Pembina’s revenue rose 34.9%, to $1.2 billion from $870.9 million a year earlier. The gains came from pipeline expansions and Provident Energy, which Pembina bought for $3.2 billion last year. Provident extracts, transports and stores NGLs. Cash flow jumped 41.7%, to $188.7 million from $133.2…