Exelon Corp (EXC)

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/JubaksJournal/OutOfTheSpotlightSolarWillThrive.aspx?page=3





Buy Exelon (EXC, news, msgs): You don't have to wait for the world's new generation of nuclear plants to profit from nuclear energy. In fact, given all the real uncertainties that underlie the so-called nuclear revival, I'd bet that going with a company that owns operating nuclear plants that generate electricity now is not only safer but likely to be more profitable in the long haul.





Exelon's 17 nuclear units generate 18% of all U.S. nuclear power. It costs a coal-fired power plant between $30 and $50 to generate a megawatt-hour of electricity. At a natural gas-fired plant, the cost is $50 to $70. Existing nuclear plants generate electricity for just $15 a megawatt-hour. Nationally, the retail price of electricity averages $100 to $150 a megawatt-hour.





Nuclear plants' big edge on profit margins is likely to increase as efforts to combat global climate change impose extra costs on power plants that use carbon-based fuels.





Exelon had its best year for power generation from its nuclear units in 2007 thanks to a record 94.5% average capacity. The company seems to think these good times will go on for a while. It has raised the dividend it pays by 14% to an annual $2 a share and announced a $500 million increase to a $1.25 billion plan to buy back shares. (The shares paid a yield of 2.4% as of Monday.)