Tag - Utilities

This week in Newsletter Watch, we focus on ChangeWave Investing editor Toby Smith, who is one of the most widely followed financial newsletter advisors. According to his investment strategy, a “changewave” is any emerging technology or trend that, like a wave,  is unstoppable. His focus, therefore, is isolating these future trends and the isolating individual stocks that are poised to ride these waves.

One method that Smith uses to determine these changewaves is by analyzing ongoing surveys of the members of his "ChangeWave Alliance." The participants in this group include investors and professional analysts, industry experts and tech industry employees, ranging from salespeople to researchers to CEOs.

Through ongoing and detailed surveys, these participants provide a unique look into patterns and trends, offering valuable information on developing research, sales trends, expectations and future plans.

"Recently, the ChangeWave Alliance took its first comprehensive look at corporate energy usage and the findings were eye-opening. We found that a sea change is occurring in the way corporations view energy consumption," Smith said.

According to the Alliance survey, 62% of those "in the know" expect either a "moderate" or "significant" rise in electricity prices in the next 12 months. Only 2% said they think prices will remain at current levels.

Twenty-two percent of respondents reported that their company is "very concerned" about reducing its energy usage, and another 35% said their company is "somewhat concerned."

Most important, he adds, 23% reported their company's spending on energy efficiency products and technologies will increase during the next six months — three . . .

Water is one of those products that will never go out of style. And if you happen to sell the stuff, you’re in luck because today’s markets are thirstier than ever.

Climate change is among the factors driving increased demand for fresh water; Georgetown, Grand Cayman-based Consolidated Water Co. Ltd. (Nasdaq:CWCO) is one of the leading desalination companies poised to benefit from these conditions — no matter how illiquid the capital markets get.

The $352-million market cap company runs 12 reverse osmosis seawater filtration plants and serves freshwater-starved markets in the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, Belize and the British Virgin Islands.

Living up to its name, 35-year old Consolidated Water has been an active acquirer of other water providers and is now the regional leader in desalination technology. It has exclusive long-term, fixed price contracts in lucrative resort markets and faces little competition for its retail and bulk sales (although that could change as big, well-resourced companies like General Electric Company (NYSE:GE) enter the water industry).

Share prices had been slowly sinking for several months until investors caught . . .

www.amwater.com
(Nasdaq:AWK)
Scheduled for the week of April 21
$1.6 billion estimated proceeds
$4 billion estimated post-money valuation

Water is necessary for life. We can engineer around petroleum and probably will one of these days, but we will not be able to figure out a substitute for water. Someday, the Great Lakes region will be America’s Saudi Arabia.

Rather than buy Cleveland real estate right now, you could consider shares in American Water Works. It’s an old-line water utility that’s been around in one form or another since 1886. The company now serves customers in 32 states and one Canadian province. Right now, it’s 100% owned by RWE, a German water utility. RWE has been trying to lighten its American Water Works stake for a while and has been hampered by the lousy stock market. This offering is for 40% of RWE’s position, and the company says it would like to sell more of its stock in the future.

The deal might be a tough sell for those who can’t navigate financial statements. American Water Works has been losing money on a GAAP basis, reporting a loss of $342.8 million in 2007 on revenues of $2.2 billion. However, part of that loss came from $509.3 million in non-cash goodwill impairment charges. The company . . .

FuelCell Energy, Inc. (Nasdaq: FCEL), manufacturer of 24/7, high efficiency, ultra-clean power plants for commercial, industrial and utility customers, said today that it sold three DFC300 power plants to Eastern Municipal Water District (EMWD) in California.

The power plants will supply 750 kilowatts (kW) of electricity needed to run the EMWD wastewater processing facility while reducing local greenhouse gas emissions by 10,400 tons annually.

The California Self-Generation Incentive Program will provide $3.375 million for this project through Southern California Edison. Alliance Power will serve as project manager and is expected to install the three power plants in the first half of 2008.

EMWD is in southern California's Moreno Valley and processes 11.5 million gallons of wastewater per day from 190,000 homes and businesses in the area.

Shares of FuelCell Energy (FCEL) edged up 2.36%, or $0.21, to $9.10 in pre-market trading. Shares of FuelCell Energy have been trading in the range of $5.84 to $10.57 for the past 52 weeks.