Topic: Dividend Stocks

SUNCOR ENERGY INC. $36 – Toronto symbol SU

SUNCOR ENERGY INC. $36 (Toronto symbol SU; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 1.5 billion; Market cap: $54.0 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.4; Dividend yield: 3.1%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.suncor.com) has started work on its Fort Hills oil sands project in northern Alberta. Suncor owns 40.8% of Fort Hills; France’s Total SA holds 39.2%, while Teck Resources owns the remaining 20.0%. This $13.5-billion project (Suncor’s share is $5.5 billion) should start up in late 2017, and its reserves should last 50 years.

The company produced 602,400 barrels a day in the first quarter of 2015, up 10.5% from 545,300 a year earlier. That’s mainly because shut downs for maintenance hurt last year’s output.

However, lower oil prices cut Suncor’s earnings by 90.2%, to $175 million, or $0.12 a share, from $1.8 billion, or $1.22. Cash flow per share fell 48.0%, to $1.02 from $1.96.

Suncor has laid off workers and cut other costs in response to the oil-price drop. These moves should save it $600 million to $800 million in 2015.

The stock trades at a high 39.1 times this year’s depressed earnings forecast of $0.92 a share, but at a more moderate 17.1 times Suncor’s projected 2016 earnings of $2.11 a share. The $1.12 dividend yields 3.1%.

Suncor is a buy.

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