One of my favourite companies is Brookfield Asset Management Inc. because it invests in assets, builds up a strong basket, and then spins that product off when it has reached a certain size. One such company is Brookfield Renewable Energy Partners LP (TSX:BEP.UN)(NYSE:BEP), and I think this investment has a bright future for investors.
As the name implies, Brookfield Renewable is focused on producing electricity through cleaner methods, such as hydroelectric, wind, and other sources that don’t kick off nearly as much pollution as coal and oil.
Presently, the company has over 250 assets that generate over 10,000 MW of electricity to over four million homes per year around the world. Included in that basket are 30 wind farms, a few biomass facilities, and two natural–gas fired plants.
But it’s not stopping there…
It has a series of projects around the world that it is investing in and acquiring. In Colombia, it just purchased 57% of Isagen S.A. from the government for US$2.2 billion. This is one of Colombia’s largest hydroelectric companies and has a total of six different plants. In total, it generates 3,032 MW of electricity, which is 20% of the annual electricity production in Colombia. I expect that as the country (one of the fastest-growing economies) continues to grow, Brookfield will have ample room to grow with it.
In Brazil, the company is working on developing 127 MW of biomass and hydroelectric projects. And in Ireland, it is expanding its wind facilities with an additional 14 MW of power generation. These two projects should begin generating revenue for the company between 2016 and 2018.
Since 2010, business has been pretty good for the company. Its adjusted earnings before income taxes, depreciation, and amortization, otherwise known as EBITDA, grew by 1.5 times from 2010 to 2015. While 2015 was weak, I don’t expect the company to continue to have off years with its hydroelectric projects.
The world is realizing that it needs to move toward cleaner energy. On April 22, 2016, 177 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) countries signed the Paris Agreement, which will go into effect in 2020. This agreement is meant to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and push the world to renewables. As more nations move toward this, I anticipate Brookfield will be in a serious position to generate growing earnings.
All of this expansion, strong earnings growth, and global-warming agreements lead to what income investors should be particularly excited about. The company currently pays a lucrative 6.17% yield, which comes out to US$0.45/share per quarter. Further, the company has plans to grow the dividend. On its investor-relations website, it says, “We believe that a distribution representing an average 70% of funds from operations will allow us to meet these objectives.”
The ultimate goal is to increase the dividend by 5-9% per year. Thus far, it has done a good job in achieving that. Even when 2015 was much weaker than anticipated, the company increased the divided by 7%.
Ultimately, I believe that all investors should own this stock because it provides exposure to a growing business. For those in need of income, you’ll get a growth company that pays a lucrative yield. I say buy.
