Dividend Policy at FPL Group Inc.
Problem: On May 5, 1994 the utilities analyst of Merrill Lynch downgraded FPL Group Inc. due to an expectation of adjustment in dividend payments. The report also acknowledged the probability of a cut in the dividend. Kate Stark of First Equity Securities Corporation analyzes the situation and she has to predict what is going to happen. This investment alert was published dropped the stock price by 6% on the same day. 3 weeks ago Kate Stark has recommended a “hold” position for FPL Group. With the new report should she change her recommendation?
Electric Utility Industry: The electric utility industry is formed by three segments: generation, transmission and distribution. Securities and Exchange
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This involved building a new transmission line, refurbishing of the oldest generating plant, improving operating efficiency at all plants, and buying a majority share in a coal burning plant owned by a utility based in Georgia. By 1994 operating efficiency had improved dramatically; nuclear plant availability had risen to 83% (industry average: 70%), and fossil fuel plant availability risen to 89% (Industry average: 83%).
These expenditures are funded through internal profits and by issuing $3.7 billion of long term debt and $1.9 billion common stock. Headcount reduced by 30% while operating and maintenance expense reduced from 1.82/kWh to 1.61/kWh from 1990 to 1993. As a result FPL became the largest utility in Florida by 1994 (fourth largest in the country).
Financially 1993 was a record year: FPL’s capital expenditure was expected to decline by 33% over the next five years. Annual sales growth of 3.4% for the past five years exceeded the national average of 2% and was expected to exceed the average again for the next five years (2.7% vs. 1.8%).
New S&P Guidelines for Evaluating Investor Owned Electric Utilities
Starting October 1993, S&P started including an evaluation of a utility’s competitive position as part of its financial rating. It would consider such factors as the prospects for customer and sales growth, revenue vulnerabilities and dependencies, rates
The most noticeable growth in this section is seen in sales from 2002 to 2003. These sales have increased from 3.7% in 2001-02 to 23.5% in 2002-03 after the expansion of the store. This truly helps the company to a positive way when seeing such drastic changes. Net earnings have almost doubled and gross profit was on the rise as well, which is also a positive trend for the company that will not go unnoticed. This indicates a positive correlation and increases in profitability.
From 1976 to 1982 the compound annual growth in net sales was 18.5% and the compound annual growth of after tax profit was 25.9%. Therefore, a 10% net sales growth shown in the proforma financial data seems reasonable.
1. In the last five years the growth in sales for the company has been around 10% per annum, except for the 1997, the growth was 18.78%. In the case, nothing is mentioned that company has made any drastic changes in its strategy to grow faster. In such a scenario, projected a consistent growth of 20% per annum for the next 5 years is too optimistic.
The new nuclear power plants will all be federally run by the Department of Energy. The price of the energy will be exactly the breakeven point because there is no incentive for the government to make a profit because they are funded through taxes. This will keep the prices of electricity low to satisfy the customers. Regulations will be extremely high to prevent against disasters and to calm citizens about the dangers of nuclear energy. Based on 2016 estimates from the EIA, to completely replace coal energy with nuclear alone, 1.24 trillion killowatthours of nuclear energy will have to be generated. This would equate to roughly 13 new nuclear reactors the size of the Palo Verde nuclear power plant in Arizona. In reality, more than 13 plants will be needed to save on
The productive assets of property, plant, and equipment changed dramatically in 1996 they were 5,581 to 2010 an increase to 21,706. In total current assets there was a increase in 1996 from 5,910 to in 2010 21,579. Another significant change is in long term debt in 1996 of 1,116 to in 2010 an increase to 14,041. Also an important figure to note is in the retained earning in 1996 they were 94% (15,127) to 2010 68%
In light of the situation mentioned above, FPL has to ensure that it has the resources available to meet future competition where one of the determinants of winning or retaining new business may be price. Hence, its dividend payout policy must be modified to account for these industry changes.
In terms of the financial outlook for the O.M Scott & Sons Company for the next few years, there are several notable changes that occur as a result of the changes management enacted through 1957-1961. It is important to note that both the pro forma income statement and balance sheet assume a 23.5% annual compounded growth figure based on the years stated earlier. Emphasis will be placed on forecasted numbers for the years 1962-1964 in order to provide readers with projected figures established through several key assumptions.
The next 3 years witnessed a continuous increase in sales and revenues. Their profit margin increased to reach 4.97% by year 1992.
outlook remains stable. This rating action follows the announcement that Pfizer will acquire Allergan Plc in a stock
Fuel prices are an important part to look at, and when doing so you can see an obvious difference in the numbers between coal burned power plants and nuclear power plants. The fuel costs make up 30 percent of the overall production costs of nuclear power plants. Fuel costs for coal, natural gas and oil, however, make up about 80 percent of the production costs. Between these two lies a fifty percent difference for fuel costs. For nuclear run plants it is every 18-24 months that a nuclear power plant needs to be refueled. Because nuclear plants refuel every 18-24 months, they are not subject to fuel price volatility like natural gas and oil power plants. The numbers $300 million to $500 million—includes estimated radiological, used fuel ($100 million) and site restoration costs (about $300 million) (Costs: Fuel, Operation, Waste Disposal & Life Cycle,
Projected rising electricity demand and higher natural gas prices next year are expected to contribute to higher utilization rates among the remaining coal-fired power plants, while they stay in operations for the time being.
As a result, numerous countries are creating more nuclear power plants. From the 1990s, the rate of nuclear power plants constructed increased because of technological and managerial, deregulation, and safety improvements.
Today, nuclear fission produces 70% of the zero-carbon electricity used in the United States. In the face of the increasing effects of climate change, scientists and some environmental activists are calling for a “nuclear renaissance” in the United States. Yet, with just a few nuclear reactors under construction—compared with more than two-dozen in China—there is no evidence that such a nuclear revival is in the making. Instead, recent years have seen some nuclear plants forced to close and dozens more facing early retirement
Since the accident at Fukushima, many scientists and citizens are worried about the nuclear industry. In 2011 the nuclear reactors at Fukushima, Japan were damaged causing a reactor meltdown. Even to this day, highly radioactive substances are flowing into the ocean. (The real nuclear meltdown 1) Incidents such as these have caused many counties and industries to debate using this technology and to move on from the nuclear industry. Recently in the United States, many nuclear reactors were shutdown due to aging reactors and power plants, costing many companies millions of dollars. Many companies have spent millions of dollars maintaining power plants and upgrading them to meet new safety standards. Some business people have determined that upgrading the reactors to meet new safety standards are just not worth it. Nuclear reactors become more unpredictable as they age, making it difficult to decide if a twenty-year-old reactor is worth upgrading.
This means that a reactor would supply a facility with a large amount of power, instead of that electricity coming from the grid. A few examples would be desalination of water, nitrogen fixation, and oil refining[1]. As shown before, building a Gen II reactor is a huge undertaking of both time and money. Therefore, the companies that finance them are focused on maximizing the power output upon completion. There was no economical reason to customize the energy output for a specific need, so nuclear energy was resigned to supply the grid exclusively. The problem with producing energy to the grid is that a lot of it is lost in transportation and distribution. The Energy Information Association (EIA) estimates that about six percent of all energy production to the grid in the US is wasted in this way[6]. Direct power does not factor into this calculation, so increasing its use will not decrease that percentage. What it will do is decrease the amount of energy the grid needs to supply by a significant amount, thus reducing the amount of waste. Industry accounts for about twenty percent of energy used in the US, none of which is supplied by Nuclear power[9]. Other alternative energy sources, like wind and solar, fail to adequately address the needs of factories that need continuous and large amounts of electricity. The EIA has invested a lot of money in SMR