Parent and subsidiary are solid income buys

Article Excerpt

Canadian Utilities and its parent company, ATCO, continue to simplify their operations. That’s good news, as investors prefer pure-play companies. Their quality businesses should also let them keep raising their dividends. CANADIAN UTILITIES LTD. is a buy. The company (Toronto symbols CU [class A non-voting] $32 and CU.X [class B voting] $32; Income-Growth Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 273.3 million; Market cap: $8.7 billion; Dividend yield: 5.4%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Highest; www.canadianutilities.com) distributes electricity and natural gas in Alberta and Australia. It also owns or invests in 6 power plants—1 in Canada, 2 in Australia, 2 in Mexico, and 1 in Puerto Rico. ATCO owns 52.2% of the company. Starting with the March 2020 payment, Canadian Utilities raised its quarterly dividend for investors by 3.0%. Investors now receive $0.4354 a share instead of $0.4227. The new annual rate of $1.74 yields a high 5.4%. The company has raised its dividend each year since 1972. In 2019, the company sold its Canadian fossil fuel plants for $821 million…