Otter Tail Corp (NASDAQ:OTTR)

Good company in a good growing market

It's been hard to find a good utility stock at a good price. I think this is the best of the bunch.

Something to keep an eye on...

"2:01p ET July 3, 2012 (Business Wire)

Fitch Ratings has affirmed the long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of Otter Tail Corporation (OTTR) at 'BBB-' and the long-term IDR of its regulated electric utility subsidiary, Otter Tail Power Company (OTP) at 'BBB'. The Rating Outlook for both entities remains Negative. Approximately $250 million of outstanding debt is affected by this action.

Due to the risks of its diversified businesses, Fitch rates OTTR one notch below its regulated electric subsidiary OTP. OTTR's current IDR of 'BBB-' takes into consideration the company's unusual business portfolio including a relatively small electric utility and a mix of small cyclical industrial businesses that operate in fragmented and competitive markets. The 2008-2009 recession revealed the vulnerability of OTTR's business portfolio as the cyclical industrial and service businesses experienced steep declines."

OTTR does not have the cash flow to cover its dividend which it must raise annually to maintain credibility. Something has to give eventually and it may involve OTTR divesting all non-utility businesses at a loss and having to rely entirely on genration. This will not sit well witgh MN or ND rate commissioners. So far they have been lucky to keep things rolling along.

very diversified porftolio and on top of that, no one is going to stop using electricity to heat and cool their homes and businesses no matter how bad the economy is, so when their portfolio is made up of cheap, abundant, and green energy (wind energy and hydro-energy) this company will be set for centries.

Stable with dividend.

Good insider holding.
Low PS.
Manageable debt.

following Bill Gates on this one

5 STAR, Small-cap, dividend payer

May 12, 2010 $ 0.298 Dividend
Feb 10, 2010 $ 0.298 Dividend
Nov 10, 2009 $ 0.298 Dividend
Aug 12, 2009 $ 0.298 Dividend
May 13, 2009 $ 0.298 Dividend
Feb 11, 2009 $ 0.298 Dividend

They're at the intersection of old coal and new wind. They should do pretty well, even if they don't run away from Mr. Market.

The base electric utility operation is not going away. They are conservative with their payroll and have upside potential with the wind tower manufacturing biz.

6% dividends and diversification make them a safe play. Huge potential in the wind energy market give them a lot of growth potential.

Old TMF newsletter pick, nice 6% yield. However, watch the payout ratio and debt levels.

out perform

Dividend paying stock.

Would you pick OTTR or ITC? ITC sounds like it won't have trouble growing, but OTTR is smaller and has a nice dividend.

Solid Dividend
Well Diversified
My wind energy bet.