Topic: How To Invest

The Successful Investor Hotline – Friday, November 4, 2016

Article Excerpt

TRANSCANADA CORP., $57.94, Toronto symbol TRP, completed its acquisition of Texas-based Columbia Pipeline Group on July 1, 2016. It paid $13 billion U.S. for this business, which operates underground gas storage terminals and natural gas pipelines in the U.S. Northeast, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic and Gulf Coast regions. To help pay for this purchase, TransCanada announced this week that it will raise $3.5 billion by selling up to 60.2 million common shares at $58.50 a share. That would increase the number of shares outstanding by 7.5%. The company has also agreed to sell its power plants in the U.S. Northeast for a total of $3.7 billion U.S. It expects to complete these sales in the first half of 2017. Meanwhile, TransCanada earned $622 million in the three months ended September 30, 2016. That’s up 41.4% from $440 million a year earlier. Due to more shares outstanding, earnings per share rose at a slower pace of 25.8%, to $0.78 from $0.62. These figures exclude several unusual items, including…