Lower interest rates would take them higher

Article Excerpt

The shares of these two utilities have suffered in 2023 as higher interest prompted investors to shift into bonds. It now looks like rates will fall in 2024, which should lift their share prices. Meantime, their high-quality assets will continue to let them keep raising their dividends. CANADIAN UTILITIES LTD. (class A non-voting) is a buy. The company (Toronto symbols CU [class A non-voting] $31 and CU.X [class B voting] $31; Income-Growth Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 270.5 million; Market cap: $8.4 billion; Dividend yield: 5.8%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.canadianutilities.com) distributes electricity and natural gas in Alberta and Australia. It also owns or invests in 7 non-regulated power plants—1 in Canada, 2 in Mexico, 3 in Australia, and 1 in Chile. ATCO (see below) owns 52.3% of Canadian Utilities. In March 2023, Canadian Utilities last raised your quarterly dividend by 1.0% to $0.4486 a share from $0.4442. The annual rate of $1.79 yields a high 5.8%. The company has now increased its dividend rate for 51 consecutive…