EVRG

Market Volatility and Investment Strategies: The recent fluctuations in the stock market highlight the necessity for investors to adopt strategies that mitigate risk through diversification, low volatility, and income generation.

Invesco's ETF Recommendations: Nick Kalivas from Invesco discussed two specific exchange-traded funds that are particularly suited for navigating a year marked by trading-policy uncertainties.

Company Overview: Evergy, Inc., based in Kansas City, has a market cap of $15.9 billion and provides clean energy across Kansas and Missouri through various sources, including renewables. Despite a recent decline in share price due to missed earnings expectations, it has outperformed the Nasdaq Composite over the past year.

Analyst Outlook: Analysts maintain a "Moderate Buy" consensus on Evergy's stock, which is currently trading below the average price target of $71.25, reflecting cautious optimism about its future performance despite some recent challenges.

Momentum Trade Unwind: The momentum trade has experienced a rapid decline, erasing two years of gains in just three weeks, primarily driven by a shift from high-growth to low-volatility stocks amid macroeconomic pressures.

Investment Strategy Shift: Investors are advised to pivot towards low-volatility and defensive sectors, while also being cautious of potential overheating risks in these areas, as the market adjusts to changing rate expectations and economic conditions.

Dividend-Increasing Companies: Evergy, Cadence Bank, and Tyson Foods have a strong history of increasing dividends, appealing to income-focused investors with yields around 3% to 4%.

Recent Financial Performance: Each company has reported solid revenues in their recent earnings releases, with Evergy and Tyson exceeding consensus estimates, while Cadence Bank's revenue fell slightly short.

Company Performance and Growth Plans: Evergy, Inc. reported adjusted earnings of $3.81 per share for 2024, driven by strong cost management and increased sales, while reaffirming its long-term growth target of 4% to 6% through 2029 and a $17.5 billion capital investment plan focused on grid modernization and new energy projects.

Regulatory Developments and Customer Demand: The company made progress in Kansas and Missouri with legislative support for infrastructure investments and plans for new natural gas facilities and solar farms, anticipating demand growth from large customer projects like Google and Meta, despite acknowledging risks related to weather variability and execution challenges.

Earnings Report: Evergy, Inc. reported a full year 2024 GAAP earnings of $873.5 million ($3.79 per share), an increase from $731.3 million ($3.17 per share) in 2023, with adjusted earnings also showing growth due to new retail rates and increased demand despite challenges like mild weather.

Future Guidance: The company reaffirmed its 2025 earnings guidance range of $3.92 to $4.12 per share and a long-term adjusted EPS growth target of 4% to 6% through 2029, alongside declaring a dividend of $0.6675 per share payable in March 2025.

Company Overview and Performance: Evergy, Inc., a regulated utility company based in Kansas City, has a market cap of $15 billion and focuses on sustainable energy solutions. Its shares have outperformed the broader market, gaining 34.1% over the past year compared to the S&P 500's 20.7%.

Earnings and Analyst Ratings: Following a strong Q3 earnings report with revenue of $1.81 billion and adjusted EPS of $2.02, Evergy maintains a "Moderate Buy" consensus rating among analysts, despite some recent price target adjustments. The company's outlook for 2025 suggests continued growth in earnings.

Earnings Release Announcement: Evergy, Inc. will release its fourth quarter 2024 earnings on February 27, 2025, and host a conference call at 9:00 a.m. Eastern to discuss the results.

Company Overview: Evergy serves 1.7 million customers in Kansas and Missouri, focusing on reliable, affordable, and sustainable energy, with about half of its power coming from carbon-free sources.

Utilities Sector Performance: The Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLU) has risen 26% in the past year, driven by interest in companies supporting AI and data centers, with significant gains seen in major players like Vistra Corp and Constellation Energy. Investors are now advised to be more selective in choosing utility stocks that can adapt to increasing power demands and climate considerations.

Investment Strategies: Analysts suggest focusing on integrated utilities and midcap companies for better growth potential, with recommendations for names like Exelon, PPL Corp, and Evergy, which offer attractive dividend yields. The midcap space is highlighted as having less risk and greater upside potential, with specific mentions of NiSource and WEC Energy as promising options.

Impact of AI on Utility Stocks: The introduction of the AI chatbot DeepSeek has caused a sell-off in utility stocks due to fears that cheaper AI development may reduce electricity demand, although some analysts believe this could lead to increased AI usage and ultimately boost electricity demand growth.

Investment Outlook for Utilities: Regulated utilities with lower valuations and attractive yields, such as Entergy, Xcel Energy, and Atmos Energy, are seen as safer investments compared to riskier independent power producers like Constellation Energy and Vistra, which have higher earnings multiples and are more affected by AI market fluctuations.

Lobbying Activities: EVERGY, formerly Kansas City Power and Light Company, disclosed $60,000 in lobbying efforts focused on energy legislation, clean energy funding, and outreach to Missouri and Kansas Congressional delegations in Q4 of 2024.

Insider Trading and Institutional Investments: In the past six months, EVRG insiders have sold stock without any purchases, while 332 institutional investors increased their holdings and 294 decreased them in the latest quarter.

Put Contract Analysis: Selling a put contract at a $55.00 strike price allows investors to potentially buy shares of EVRG at a discount, with an 82% chance that the contract may expire worthless, providing a yield boost of 1.27% on cash commitment.

Call Contract Strategy: Purchasing shares at $63.25 and selling a covered call at a $65.00 strike could yield a total return of 5.93%, with a 54% chance of the call expiring worthless, resulting in a yield boost of 3.16%.

Dividend Stocks for 2025: The article highlights 25 top dividend stocks to consider for investment in 2025, emphasizing sectors like financial services, energy, utilities, pharmaceuticals, and real estate that are expected to perform well due to various market conditions and company fundamentals.

Investment Opportunities: Key companies mentioned include Ares Capital, Enterprise Products Partners, Dominion Energy, Pfizer, Realty Income, and Target, all of which have strong dividend histories and growth potential, making them attractive options for income-seeking investors.

Company Overview: Evergy, Inc. is a large-cap electric services company based in Kansas City, with a market cap of $14.2 billion, generating electricity from various sources including renewables, and has shown mixed performance against the S&P 500 over the past year.

Financial Performance: Following a strong Q3 earnings report, Evergy's revenue increased by 8.4% year-over-year, and analysts maintain a "Moderate Buy" rating with a price target suggesting a slight premium to current stock levels.

Upcoming Ex-Dividend Dates: Marriott International, CenterPoint Energy, and Evergy will trade ex-dividend on 11/21/24, with respective dividends of $0.63, $0.21, and $0.6675 scheduled for payment in December 2024.

Market Impact and Dividend Yields: Following the ex-dividend date, shares are expected to open lower by approximately 0.22% for Marriott, 0.67% for CenterPoint, and 1.05% for Evergy, with estimated annual yields of 0.90%, 2.70%, and 4.18% respectively.

Investment Rating: EVERGY INC (EVRG) has received an 81% rating from Validea's Multi-Factor Investor model, indicating strong interest based on its low volatility, momentum, and high net payout yields in the Electric Utilities industry.

Pim van Vliet's Strategy: The strategy, developed by Pim van Vliet, emphasizes that low volatility stocks can outperform higher volatility ones with less risk, supported by his research and publication on conservative factor investing.

Evergy's Performance: Evergy, Inc. has shown a year-to-date stock gain of 21.4%, but it still lags behind the S&P 500 and Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund. The company reported strong Q3 earnings with an 8.5% growth in operating revenues and reaffirmed its adjusted EPS guidance for the fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings and Price Targets: The stock holds a "Moderate Buy" consensus rating from analysts, with seven recommending "Strong Buy." Mizuho analyst initiated coverage with an "Outperform" rating and a price target of $67, indicating potential upside based on current prices.

Conference Call Announcement: Evergy, Inc. will hold a conference call on November 7, 2024, at 9:00 AM ET to discuss its Q3 24 earnings results.

Webcast Access Information: Interested parties can access the live webcast of the conference call through Evergy's investor relations website.

Earnings Performance: Evergy, Inc. reported a third quarter 2024 GAAP EPS of $2.02, up from $1.53 in 2023, and reaffirmed its 2024 adjusted EPS guidance range of $3.73 to $3.93 while establishing a new guidance for 2025 of $3.92 to $4.12.

Capital Investment Plan: The company announced a capital investment plan of $16.2 billion for 2025-2029 aimed at modernizing infrastructure and meeting growing energy demands, alongside a 4% increase in quarterly dividends to $0.6675 per share.

Earnings Performance: Evergy, Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $465.6 million ($2.02 per share), an increase from $351.6 million ($1.53 per share) in the same quarter last year, surpassing analysts' expectations of $1.93 per share.

Revenue Growth: The company's revenue rose by 8.5% to $1.811 billion compared to $1.669 billion in the previous year.