Yahoo Finance ALLETE's (ALE) Q4 Earnings In Line With Estimates, Down Y/Y
ALLETE, Inc. ALE delivered fourth-quarter 2019 adjusted earnings of 92 cents per share, in-line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate. However, on a year-over-year basis, earnings declined 22%.
Total Revenues
In the reported quarter, total revenues amounted to $304.6 million, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $415 million by 26.6%. Also, revenues declined 32% from $448.3 million in the prior-year quarter.
In 2019, the company posted revenues of $1,240.5 million, down 17.2 % from $1,498.6 million in 2018.
Allete, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Allete, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Allete, Inc. Quote
Highlights of the Release
ALLETE’s total electricity sales volume slipped nearly 2.4% year over year to 3,580 million kilowatt-hours.
The company’s total operating expenses in the fourth quarter totaled $254.8 million, down 33.7% year over year.
Operating income in the quarter under review declined 22.2% to $49.8 million. Interest expenses fell 1.8% to $16 million.
Financial Update
ALLETE’s cash and cash equivalents as of Dec 31, 2019 were $69.3 million, up from $69.1 million as of Dec 31, 2018.
Long-term debt as of Dec 31, 2019 was $1,400.9 million, down from $1,428.5 million as of Dec 31, 2018.
Guidance
The company’ management guided 2020 EPS in the range of $3.40-$3.70, whose mid-point of $3.55 is lower than the current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the period of $3.65. The company reaffirmed its long-term objective of achieving average annual earnings per share growth of 5-7%.
Zacks Rank
ALLETE currently carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell).
You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Other Utility Releases
Xcel Energy XEL posted fourth-quarter 2019 operating earnings of 56 cents per share, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 53 cents by 5.6%.
NextEra Energy NEE reported fourth-quarter 2019 adjusted earnings of $1.44 per share, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.54 by 6.5%.
CMS Energy Corporation CMS reported fourth-quarter 2019 adjusted earnings of 68 cents, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 69 cents.
5 Stocks Set to Double
Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.
Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.
Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
CMS Energy Corporation (CMS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Xcel Energy Inc. (XEL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Allete, Inc. (ALE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
