Newalta Comes Up Big With Solid Second Quarter Results

One of the companies that we recently profiled in our free weekly newsletter, Take Stock, was Newalta (TSX:NAL).  The company reported its second quarter results on Wednesday and an update is warranted.

The stock is up about 7% today (and is now up by 14% since our profile) as the company’s second quarter results were strong.

One of the things that we like most about Newalta is the unique collection of assets that it has in place and the strong platform for organic growth that they provide.  These qualities shone through in the second quarter.

Revenues in the quarter climbed by 15% from the same quarter a year ago.  Adjusted EPS of $0.22 was up 120% from last year and book value per share grew at a year over year pace of 6%.

Driving these results were the growth related investments the company has made in its New Markets and Oilfield divisions.  For the first six months of 2013, gross profit in these divisions is up 15% and 10% respectively.

New Markets is benefitting from growth in Canada’s oil sands and U.S. shale patches, and the Oilfield division has had a bit of tailwind from the rise in oil prices that has occurred.

Management expects commodity prices to remain at these levels through the balance of the year, and activity to continue at its vibrant pace.  Because of these positive dynamics, they are sticking with their target to grow adjusted EBITDA by 20% in the second half of 2013.

Foolish Bottom Line

Newalta is just getting started when it comes to leveraging the unique asset base it has cobbled together.  And even though the stock has moved up, it still trades at just 1.2 times book value.  A book value that is potentially understated given the uniqueness of the company’s platform.  As long as the price of oil holds and activity levels remain high in this sector, Newalta’s stock could still be in the early stages of putting together a very nice run for long-term focused investors.

Though we like Newalta, it didn’t quite make the cut for our recently released top Canadian small cap stock for 2013 – and beyond.  To find out which company beat it out, simply click here now and download our FREE profile.

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Fool contributor Iain Butler does not own shares in any company mentioned at this time.  The Motley Fool doesn’t own shares in any of the companies mentioned.