- Natural gas company ATCO’s (TSX:ACO.X) adjusted earnings for its first quarter of 2020 are marginally lower than in 2019’s same quarter
- The company reported adjusted earnings of $106 million, as opposed to $112 million in the same quarter last year
- ATCO attributed this decrease to the sale of various portfolio assets in the second half of 2019
- However, ATCO made some gains through continued contract work and contributions from Canadian Utilities
- ATCO’s (ACO.X) is up 2.35 per cent, and is currently trading for $38.17 per share
Natural gas company ATCO’s (TSX:ACO.X) adjusted earnings for its first quarter of 2020 are marginally lower than in 2019’s same quarter.
The company reported adjusted earnings of $106 million, as opposed to $112 million in the same quarter last year.
ATCO attributed these lower earnings to the sale of some of its assets in the second half of 2019. In 2019’s third quarter, the company sold the Canadian fossil fuel-based electricity generation portfolio. In 2019’s fourth quarter, it then went on to sell Alberta PowerLine.
If you exclude the forgone earnings impact of these business sales, ATCO’s adjusted earnings for 2020’s first quarter improve greatly. In fact, they’d be $10 million higher than in the same period of 2019.
These gains were made due to continued work on ATCO Structures’ LNG Canada Cedar Valley Lodge contract. Also, the company received higher contributions from Canadian Utilities, due to ongoing cost efficiencies, utility rate base growth, and lower income taxes.
However, arguably the most defining economic event of 2020 was the COVID-19 health crisis.
While the company did not outline the pandemic’s impact, ATCO’s CEO, Nancy Southern, commented on the company’s reaction to it.
“ATCO activated our Pandemic Response Plan in February 2020, rapidly ensuring the health and safety of our employees and our customers.
“Across all our global operations, the people of ATCO have continued to deliver our essential products and services to our customers, and the communities we serve. I am so very proud of their commitment and resilience in these challenging times,” she said.
ATCO’s (ACO.X) is up 2.35 per cent, and is currently trading for $38.17 per share, as of 1:00pm EDT.