New assets boost cash flow

Article Excerpt

BROOKFIELD RENEWABLE PARTNERS L.P. $34 is a buy. The partnership (Toronto symbol BEP.UN; High-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Utilities sector; Units outstanding: 663.2 million; Market cap: $22.5 billion; Distribution yield: 6.3%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.bep.brookfield.com) owns 239 hydroelectric generating stations, 230 wind farms, 226 solar facilities, and 7,211 distributed generation and energy storage sites. With the March 2025 payment, Brookfield will raise your quarterly distribution by 5.1%. The new annual rate of $1.492 U.S. a unit yields a high 6.3%. The partnership aims to increase the annual payment by 5% to 9% each year. In the quarter ended December 31, 2024, Brookfield’s revenue increased 8.2%, to $1.43 billion from $1.32 billion a year earlier (all amounts except unit price and market cap in U.S. dollars). That’s partly due to acquisitions. The sale of less-profitable businesses also helped boost cash flow by 19.2%, to $304 million from $255 million; cash flow per unit gained 21.1%, to $0.46 from $0.38, on fewer units outstanding. Brookfield Renewable is a..