2021 Week 25: Black Hills Corp (NYSE: BKH)

Portfolio Update

The FiveTwenty portfolio received $65.42 in dividends in the past week. K, MMM, and ORI paid their quarterly dividends during the week.

Past Week Dividend$65.42
Current Quarter Dividend (Q2 2021)$363.83
LifeTime Dividend$476.87
Estimated Annual Dividend$1,882.14
Dividend Scorecard

The capital allocation for the week of 06/20/2021 to 06/26/2021 will be used to establish a position in Black Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH)

BKH – Company Profile

Black Hills Corp (BKH) operates as an electric and natural gas utilities company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Electric Utilities, Gas Utilities, Power Generation, and Mining. The Electric and Gas Utilities segments serve customers in Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming. Official Site | Wikipedia

Dividend Streak51 years
Yield3.30%
Payout Ratio60.60%
P/E18.37
Entry Criteria Scorecard

Financials

Does BKH have the financial means to sustain and raise its dividend going forward?

Over the last decade, BHK has steadily grown revenue from $1.3 billion in 2011 to $1.7 billion in 2020. Net earnings grew from $50 million to $228 million over the same period. However, net earnings were much more volatile over the period. Net earnings for 2015 and 2016 saw significant adverse impacts due to non-cash asset impairment charges stemming from BHK’s decision to exit the conventional oil and gas exploration business and divest non-core oil and gas assets.

In the last 10 years, BHK’s GAAP EPS reflected the same volatility as GAAP net earnings. On the other hand adjusted EPS grew steadily from $2.09 in 2012 to $3.73 in 2020.

The average dividend per share growth rate was 4.30% per year in the past 10 years and 6.20% per year in the past 3 years. (per GuruFocus) BHK has been able to increase the rate of growth for its dividends in the last 5 year to above 6% while at the same time maintaining a dividend payout ratio below 60%.

BHK in 2021 and beyond

BHK posted solid Q1 2021 results. Adjusted EPS for the quarter were $1.54 compared to $1.59 for Q1 2020. A $0.11 per share weather benefit was overshadowed by a $0.15 per share adverse impact from Winter Storm Uri and a $0.2 per share negative impact from a higher share count due to equity issuance in February 2020.

During the earnings call the company reaffirmed its 2021 and 2022 earnings guidance. BHK expects adjusted EPS in the $3.80 to $4.00 range for 2021, and in the $3.95 to $4.15 range for 2022. Additionally, the company is targeting long term EPS growth of 5% to 7%, resulting in a 5%+ dividend growth rate while being able to maintain a payout ratio of 50-60%.

Valuation

Are we paying too much for BKH at the current share price?

In the last 10 years, BKH’s PE ratio saw a low of 11.64 and a high of 246.46, with a median value of 19.77. (per GuruFocus) The current TTM P/E ratio of 18.37 is slightly below the historical median.

The current share price of $67.59 is 0.8% below the 50-day moving average and 8.6% above the 200-day moving average. Additionally, the share price is near the 80th percentile of the 52 week trading range.

At the current share price, the share price is still trading 21% below its pre-pandemic peak of $85.53. Furthermore, it is still in line with historical valuations and we believe it is a fair entry point.

Yield

How does the current dividend yield for BKH compare to historical values?

In the last 10 years, the dividend yield for BKH has been in a range of 2.4% to 5.09%, with a median of 3.17%. (per GuruFocus) The current TTM yield of 3.30% is above the historical median.

With the current yield being above the historical median, even if just slightly, BKH offers a good entry point for establishing a position.

Thesis

Why are we adding BHK to the FiveTwenty portfolio?

BHK has a solid track record of increasing dividend payouts. In addition, the company has posted a solid dividend growth rate over the last decade. Furthermore, the company grew its dividends by better than 6% over the last five years.

With a current dividend payout ratio of below 60% and a stable and predictable business, we believe that BKH will be able to continue be a reliable source of growing dividend income.

Additional Research


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