Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2017: Fall Forward
Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA
Yieldco Buyouts
A Canadian Yieldco Invasion sent clean energy stocks running up in October and November. My Ten Clean Energy Stocks model portfolio benefited from the purchase of 25% of Yieldco Atlantica Yield (NASD:ABY) by Canadian utility and renewable power generation conglomerate Algonquin Power and Utilities (TSX:AQN or OTC AQUNF), which was one of my Ten Clean Energy Stocks for 2009.
Rumors had circulated that the Atlantica stake would be purchased by Brookfield (NYSE:BAM) and its Yieldco Brookfield Renewable (NYSE:BEP). If there were discussions, Brookfield must have decided that it had enough on its plate with the recently...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2017: Sunny August Skies
by Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA
After a strong performance all year, the stock market stumbled in August, along with clean energy stocks in general, although the sector continues to outperform the broad market. My Ten Clean Energy Stocks model portfolio again came out on top, buoyed by two winners (Seaspan Preferred (SSW-PRG) and MiX Telematics (MIXT). Both were catalyzed by strong earnings reports at the start of August, which I summarized last month.
For the month of August, the model portfolio was up 0.9%, for a 26.3% total gain for the year to the end of August. It's clean energy benchmark...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2017: Summer Harvest
Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA
Colossal Fossil Failure
With a president actively hostile towards renewable energy and focused on promoting fossil fuels, it would be easy to think that clean energy stocks would underperform their fossil cousins. The exact opposite has been true. Despite the administrations' efforts and tweets bragging about new highs for the Dow, energy funds are down over 10% for the year. For example, the Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE), largely composed of oil and gas companies, is down 13% for the year. The tiny coal sector did better, with the VanEck Vectors Coal ETF up 18%.
Even so, Trump's...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2017: First Quarter Earnings
Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA In the two months since the last update, most of the stocks in my Ten Clean Energy Stocks model portfolio have reported first quarter earnings. There were few surprises, and those were mostly pleasant ones, allowing the model portfolio to add to its gains, and pull a little farther ahead of its benchmark. For the year to the end of May, the model portfolio is up 13.8%, 2% ahead of its benchmark. The benchmark is an 80/20 blend of the clean energy income...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2017: Earnings Season
Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA Earnings season began in earnest in February. My Ten Clean Energy Stocks model portfolio gave back a little of its large January gains because a mix of good and bad earnings mostly offset each other. One pick (Seaspan Preferred) gave back its large January gains. Neither the original gain nor the loss were driven by news. Instead, they seemed driven by investors changing expectations for global trade in an uncertain political environment. For the year to March 17th, the portfolio and...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2017: January Jump
Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA The year got off to a spectacular start for my tenth annual Ten Clean Energy Stocks model portfolio. (You can read about the performance in 2016 and prior years here.) The portfolio and its income and growth subportfolios were up 9%, 8%, and 14%, respectively. Clean energy stocks in general also did well, with my three respective benchmarks up 2 to 3% each. (I use the YieldCo ETF YLCO as a benchmark for the income stocks, the Clean Energy ETF PBW as a benchmark for the...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2016: Year In Review
Tom Konrad, Ph.D., CFA 2016 was generally a good year for the stock market, but the average clean energy investor did not share in the gains. Clean energy investors naturally gravitate toward exciting stocks developing solar and, more recently, electric vehicles. These technologies are bringing great benefits to the planet and customers (including me- I installed a solar array on my home in in 2014, and my wife and I just bought a Toyota Prius Prime plug-in.) Investors' lousy returns are due to a common problem in sectors with rapidly improving technology: Competition within the industry...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2017: Finessing Trump
Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA The History of the "10 Clean Energy Stocks" Model Portfolios 2017 will be the ninth year I publish a list of ten clean energy stocks I expect to do well in the coming year. This series has evolved from a simple, off-the-cuff list in 2008, to a full blown model portfolio, with predetermined benchmarks and (mostly) monthly updates on performance and significant news for the 10 stocks. While there is much overlap between the model portfolio and my own holdings (both personal and in the Green Global Equity Income Portfolio (GGEIP),...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks Under Trump (November 2016)
Tom Konrad, Ph.D., CFA So far, the broad stock market seems to like the idea of a tax and regulation-cutting and infrastructure spending Trump administration and Republican controlled Congress. The bond market is less pleased at the rapidly growing deficits such a "borrow and spend" policy will inevitably entail. While the S&P 500 advanced 3.4% in November, bond funds fell in the face of rising interest rates. The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) fell 8.4%. Clean energy stocks were also hurt by the incoming President's climate change skepticism and his promises to undo environmental regulations put...
Election Jitters Spell Opportunity: Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2016
Tom Konrad, Ph.D., CFA This October saw falling leaves and falling stocks. Then came the first week of November with its election jitters and stripped the trees of the rest of their leaves like a fifty mile an hour wind sending stocks flying as well. While Donald Trump's unpredictable performance has the whole stock market rattled (at least when it looks like he might win), his anti-environment and pro fossil fuel rhetoric have had stocks in the sector quaking like the leaves on an aspen. Although all its benchmarks were decidedly in the red for October...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2016: Just The Numbers (9-1 to 10-11-16)
Tom Konrad, Ph.D., CFA I missed my regular monthly update of my Ten Clean Energy Stocks for 2016 model portfolio at the start of October due to vacation. This mini-update will just give the numbers through October 11th, without the regular discussion of company events. I'll follow up in early November covering highlights for the full two months. As you can see from the chart below, the portfolio and all sub-portfolios did very well by outperforming their benchmarks by 3% to 12% for the six week period. See the May...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2016: August Earnings
Tom Konrad, Ph.D., CFA My Ten Clean Energy Stocks for 2016 model portfolio continued to coast upward in August after five months of blistering performance since February, while clean energy sector benchmarks and real managed portfolio, the Green Global Equity Income Portfolio (GGEIP), pulled back slightly. The following chart shows the performance of the model portfolio and its sub-portfolios against their benchmarks. The portfolio, its growth and income subportfolios, and GGEIP all remain far ahead of their benchmarks. Second quarter earnings announced this month were neutral or positive for the income...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2016: Quick July Update
Tom Konrad, Ph.D., CFA My Ten Clean Energy Stocks for 2016 model portfolio had yet another strong month, as did my real managed portfolio, the Green Global Equity Income Portfolio (GGEIP.) The shorter-format of last month's update turned out to be popular, so I'm doing it again. July Total Return July Benchmark Return YTD Total Return YTD Benchmark Return 10 Clean Energy Stocks 8.5% 5.5% 15.3% ...
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2016: Quick June Update
Tom Konrad, Ph.D., CFA June was another good month (and capped a strong first half of the year) for my Ten Clean Energy Stocks for 2016 model portfolio. This update's going to be a short one, but here are the basic stats: June Total Return June Benchmark Return YTD Total Return YTD Benchmark Return 10 Clean Energy Stocks 3.3% 0.6% 6.8% -2.8% 7 Clean Energy Income Stocks...
High Income Green Investing For Small Investors
Tom Konrad Ph.D., CFA Until recently, green income investing was an oxymoron. Most companies people think of as green (think Tesla Motors (TSLA) or First Solar (FSLR)) are relatively new companies that are investing all of their profits (such as they are) back into the business. Meanwhile traditional income sectors like utilities, oil and gas, and coal mining are deeply tied into fossil fuels. Real Estate Income Trusts (REITs) are the sole exception. A REIT is as green as the property it owns, and a few such companies are real leaders in sustainable buildings......
Ten Clean Energy Stocks For 2016: Earnings Season
Tom Konrad CFA May was a tough month for most clean energy stocks, even though the broad market was up slightly, but my Ten Clean Energy Stocks for 2016 model portfolio continued to out-perform, mostly because of strong earnings for several stocks. The model portfolio was up 3.1% for the month and 3.8% for the year to date, even though its clean energy benchmark fell 2.0%, for a decline of 2.8% for the year through May 31st. The broad market of small cap stocks also rose, and was up 2.2% for a total gain of 2.4% for the...
