Topic: How To Invest

What is Pat’s commentary for the week of June 3, 2025

Article Excerpt

We’ve often said that growth by acquisition is riskier than growth from a company’s existing operations. That’s because the buyer of something rarely knows as much about it as the seller. That knowledge gap exposes the buyer to an above-average risk of unpleasant surprises. Of course, some companies do a better job than others when acquiring assets. They may be able to spot companies that have over-looked value, or that will be easy to integrate with their existing operations. AltaGas took on a lot of risk with the huge acquisition of WGL Holdings that it made in July 2018. However, it stuck to its promise of selling other non-core assets to pay down a lot of the debt it took on with the large purchase. The company now has strong appeal for growth-seeking investors: AltaGas’ regulated utilities provide steady cash flow that supports the expansion of its midstream operations and the build-out of its liquefied petroleum gas facilities. In fact, the company’s future…