Latest news with #KarenThomas
Yahoo
19-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
This Renewable Energy Stock Is Down 35% and Ready to Soar
Written by Karen Thomas, MSc, CFA at The Motley Fool Canada Global energy demand is expected to remain strong for the foreseeable future, with renewable energy making up an increasingly larger portion of total demand. This is effectively elevating the business prospects for renewable energy companies like Northland Power (TSX:NPI). Yet, this renewable energy stock is down over 35% in the last five years, resulting in a strong, undervalued opportunity for investors. Here's why I think Northland Power stock is on the cusp of strong performance in the years ahead. New projects to drive cash flows for this renewable energy stock As you can see from Northland Power's stock price graph below, this renewable energy stock has had a rough time in the last five years. This price decline was a function of many things, such as rising interest rates, leverage, and inflation. Today, the macro environment is much improved, with lower interest rates and inflation. This is bringing positive changes to Northland's financial position. Also, Northland's battery storage project is now completed and in operation, and two of its other major projects, Baltic Power and Hai Long, are nearing the end stages of their development. This will mean lower capital expenditures as well as a significant ramp-up in cash flows in the coming two years. These projects will add $600 million to Northland's adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA). Also, they will add $200 million to Northland Power's free cash flow. Northland Power: A diversified renewable stock Northland Power has a global footprint of 3.4 gigawatts of energy in operation and 2.2 gigawatts under construction. This footprint is diversified both geographically and by energy source. From Canada to Northern Europe to Taiwan, this diversification gives Northland more stability in its operations and financial performance. Looking ahead, the two new projects that are expected to come onstream in the next couple of years will provide further diversification. Furthermore, Northland's renewable assets are also diversified across energy sources. With clean-burning natural gas, wind, solar, and battery energy storage assets, Northland is ready to meet the demand growth for renewable energy. A strengthening balance sheet Finally, I'd like to address Northland's balance sheet. As you know, the company's business is highly capital-intensive. Back in 2021, Northland's long-term debt peaked at over $7 billion. Today, the company has managed to bring this debt level down to $6.1 billion. Also, as you know, interest rates have come down significantly in recent years. They hit 5% in 2023, but have since declined to the current 2.75%. This, coupled with Northland's debt reduction, is resulting in lower interest payments and healthier financials. The company currently has $1.1 billion of liquidity on the balance sheet to fund new projects. Management's guidance for adjusted EBITDA in 2025 is $1.3 billion to $1.4 billion. This represents an increase of between 3% and 11% versus 2024. As we head into 2026 and 2027, cash flow will get an additional boost from the newly completed projects, Hai Long and Baltic Power. The bottom line In closing, this renewable energy stock is gearing up to really see the benefits from its recent capital-intensive years. As its two new projects come into service in the next couple of years, cash flows will get a boost, and Northland's risk profile will decrease. As a result, the stock's valuation will rise. The post This Renewable Energy Stock Is Down 35% and Ready to Soar appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada. More reading 10 Stocks Every Canadian Should Own in 2025 [PREMIUM PICKS] Market Volatility Toolkit A Commonsense Cash Back Credit Card We Love Fool contributor Karen Thomas has a position in Northland Power. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2025 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
14-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Why I'm Obsessed With This AI Stock Trading at Fire Sale Prices
Written by Karen Thomas, MSc, CFA at The Motley Fool Canada Artificial intelligence, or AI, is changing the world, improving processes, efficiencies, and performance. Blackberry Inc. (TSX:BB) has been a part of this change for many years, having developed its embedded machine-to-machine connected technology to become an invaluable player in the field. Today, this AI stock is finally gearing up for sustained revenue and earnings growth. Let's take a look. In its most recent transformation, Blackberry has taken steps to improve its balance sheet, cash flows, and cost structure. These steps included splitting the company up into three divisions – QNX, secure communications, and licensing — and selling its Cylance cybersecurity business. The restructuring also included taking more than $150 million out of its cost structure and initiating a share buyback program. Blackberry's business is made up of three main segments, QNX, secure communications, and licensing. The QNX segment is the one that we hear most about and is the primary focus. Blackberry's QNX provides critical software for embedded, machine-to-machine connected systems. It's used in automotive applications, as well as medical devices, industrial controls, and robotics. The secure communications segment specializes in secure communications software for enterprises. Some of Blackberry's secure communications clients include government agencies, financial institutions, and essential service providers. It's true that many investors have grown skeptical with regard to Blackberry. But the list of reasons to like this AI stock is growing. For example, the QNX segment has grown its revenues from $178 million in 2022 to $236 million in 2025 – that's a 33% increase over this time period. And its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) margin stands at a healthy 25%. Also, Blackberry's QNX is in more than 250 million vehicles worldwide and it's in strong demand. In fact, QNX has more than $865 million in backlog, which will make its way to the income statement over the next few years. Backlog was $460 million in 2022. In the secure communications segment, revenue is stable, with a 19% EBITDA margin and solid cash flows. Along with revenue improvements, Blackberry is also seeing improvements to its balance sheet and cash flows. And this is what takes Blackberry stock to a new level, both in terms of returns and risk. As we can see from the company's latest quarter, Blackberry's cash flows and balance sheet have strengthened considerably. In the most recent quarter, the company's operating cash usage came in at $18 million, which is a low point. Looking to the full year, Blackberry expects operating cash flow of a positive $35 million. This compares to prior years of negative operating cash flow. As for its balance sheet, Blackberry has $410 million in cash, with no debt maturities until 2029. This has given the company flexibility to invest in organic and inorganic growth, and to buy back shares if they present a good opportunity. All of this will drive shareholder value in the short and long term. Two things will likely happen as a result of this. Firstly, Blackberry's stock will trade higher because of the earnings and cash flow lift. Secondly, the stock will likely get re-rated and investors will assign it a higher multiple. This should send the stock higher in the coming months and years. The post Why I'm Obsessed With This AI Stock Trading at Fire Sale Prices appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada. Before you buy stock in BlackBerry, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor Canada analyst team just identified what they believe are the Top Stocks for 2025 and Beyond for investors to buy now… and BlackBerry wasn't one of them. The Top Stocks that made the cut could potentially produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider MercadoLibre, which we first recommended on January 8, 2014 ... if you invested $1,000 in the 'eBay of Latin America' at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $24,927.94!* Stock Advisor Canada provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month – one from Canada and one from the U.S. The Stock Advisor Canada service has outperformed the return of S&P/TSX Composite Index by 30 percentage points since 2013*. See the Top Stocks * Returns as of 6/23/25 More reading 10 Stocks Every Canadian Should Own in 2025 [PREMIUM PICKS] Market Volatility Toolkit A Commonsense Cash Back Credit Card We Love Fool contributor Karen Thomas has a position in Blackberry. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2025 Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
South Wales Guardian
13-07-2025
- Health
- South Wales Guardian
New play materials for Glangwili Hospital's Cilgerran Ward
More than £1,000 worth of play materials have been funded for the Cilgerran Ward at Glangwili Hospital, thanks to donations to Hywel Dda Health Charities, the official charity of Hywel Dda University Health Board. The funding has provided items including Play-Doh, paint, foil art, animal masks, and crayons. Karen Thomas, head of therapeutic play, said: "We are incredibly grateful for the generous donations from our local communities to Hywel Dda Health Charities. "Once again, they have provided Cilgerran Ward with invaluable assets. "The new play resources will help the therapeutic play team to work more effectively and focus their time on the children and young people (CYPs) in our care. "Being able to play while in hospital means that the CYPs can continue an aspect of their normal life. "Play is familiar and reassuring, it's how CYPs make sense of the world around them, it helps them to learn and develop and feel less anxious about their hospital visit." Nicola Llewelyn, head of Hywel Dda Health Charities, said: "The support of our local communities enables us to provide services over and above what the NHS can provide in the three counties of Hywel Dda and we are extremely grateful for every donation we receive." For more information about the charity and ways to support NHS patients and staff, visit the charity's website.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Best Stock to Buy Right Now: Open Text vs CGI?
Written by Karen Thomas, MSc, CFA at The Motley Fool Canada Technology and artificial intelligence (AI) companies are changing the world. In fact, AI is increasingly delivering cost savings and efficiencies far beyond what we could have imagined only a few years ago. Open Text Corp. (TSX:OTEX) and CGI Inc. (TSX:GIB.A) are both helping their clients harness the power of AI. But which is the best stock to buy right now? Without further ado, let's compare and contrast these two information technology companies. CGI's stock price performance over the last 20 years has been nothing short of amazing. As you can see from the price graph below, the stock has risen from $7.28 per share to the current $140.70 per share. Today, CGI's stock trades at 17 times this year's expected earnings, which are expected to grow by 9%. But this alone doesn't make CGI the best stock to buy right now. Let's dig deeper. With a long history that dates back to 1979, the IT consultancy remains well positioned to continue to capitalize on its scale and global presence. In its latest quarter, revenue increased 3.3% to $4 billion, while adjusted earnings per share (EPS) increased 7.6% to $2.12. These results were driven mainly by acquisitions. In terms of profitability, CGI posted a 15.4% return on capital. This was complemented by strong cash flow from operations of $438 million, or 11% of revenue. Also, strong margins in the quarter were evidence of efficient operational management. Finally, strong backlog of $31 billion, or twice the company's revenue, was evidence of strong demand and a bright future. Looking ahead, CGI's focus will be on AI and generative AI, cybersecurity, the cloud, and IT services. Clients are interested in digitization with an emphasis on using AI to garner more cost savings and efficiencies at a lower cost. Likewise, CGI's bottom line is also benefitting from the use of artificial intelligence in its operations. Open Text trades at a lower earnings multiple than CGI (11 times vs 17 times). And its stock price performance over the last 20 years is also very strong, just not as high as CGI's (+973% vs 1,830%). In its latest quarter, revenue declined 2.9% but free cash flow increased 7% to $374 million with a 30% free cash flow margin. The company has honed in on costs and efficiencies in order to increase the company's value. And we can expect this to continue. To do this, artificial intelligence strategies will be the focus. Like CGI, Open Text understands that the future of its business is in artificial intelligence. This means that the business AI, cloud, and technology developer will do everything with AI leading the way. For example, Open Text's AI Aviator is a suite of AI solutions embedded across Open Text platforms. It can take human tasks that require many screens and many days of work and reduce the time to minutes with the use of just one screen. The company expects this to usher in a new era of operational excellence. The benefits in terms of time, money, efficiency, and quality are significant. This has the potential to provide material cost savings as well as to improve the company's competitive advantage. Open Text has some positive catalysts (a big cost savings program) that should drive the stock higher in the short term – and it's cheaper. CGI is the best stock to buy right now however, because of its unmatched scale, expertise, diversification, and geographic reach. The post Best Stock to Buy Right Now: Open Text vs CGI? appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada. Before you buy stock in CGI Group, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor Canada analyst team just identified what they believe are the Top Stocks for 2025 and Beyond for investors to buy now… and CGI Group wasn't one of them. The Top Stocks that made the cut could potentially produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider MercadoLibre, which we first recommended on January 8, 2014 ... if you invested $1,000 in the 'eBay of Latin America' at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $24,927.94!* Stock Advisor Canada provides investors with an easy-to-follow blueprint for success, including guidance on building a portfolio, regular updates from analysts, and two new stock picks each month – one from Canada and one from the U.S. The Stock Advisor Canada service has outperformed the return of S&P/TSX Composite Index by 30 percentage points since 2013*. See the Top Stocks * Returns as of 6/23/25 More reading 10 Stocks Every Canadian Should Own in 2025 [PREMIUM PICKS] Market Volatility Toolkit Fool contributor Karen Thomas has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends CGI. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2025
BBC News
03-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Welfare needs reform despite U-turn
A grandmother living with a degenerative disease says the government's U-turn on personal independence payment (Pip) will still not help those in need, as "complete reform" is Thomas, 59, from Bulkington, near Bedworth, has had muscular dystrophy for nearly 30 years, receiving disability benefits ever since. On Tuesday, the Labour government said it would not change Pip rules until the recommendations of a review could be implemented, having won a vote on its benefits bill following last-minute concessions to party rebels. However, Ms Thomas said that despite some of the benefit cuts being reversed, the "one size fits all" welfare system remained "broken". She is no longer able to walk and is cared for primarily by her husband, but said the current system categorised her in the same group as a person who "had some difficulty walking around"."Others get the same level as me, but have half the disability. It's a constant fight to survive," she government needed to reclassify "the impacts of disabilities" in order for it to improve, Ms Thomas said. She said it was "upsetting" to have to ask for help, but any cut to Pip would be "devastating". The government previously announced current claimants would be protected from stricter eligibility changes to disability assessments have been proposed for anyone claiming Pip for the first time after the recommendations of a current review are implemented. The proposals require those applying to score at least four points for a single activity, rather than across a range of different ones, with assessments scoring everyday activities, such as washing hair, from zero to 12, for no difficulty to most difficulty. "There needs to be complete reform not just an alteration to Pip points," Ms Thomas said. 'Divide in the community' The government previously defended the proposals, after it pointed to steep rises in the numbers claiming benefits and said making changes was the only way to ensure the system remained sustainable in the Mel Smith, from the Coventry charity Grapevine that supports people with special needs, said the proposed reforms still raised concerns."What does that do for the disabled community, you'll get one group who will be eligible and then other people who won't," she argued the new criteria was therefore "unfair" and future claimants would "lose out on vital support". Follow BBC Coventry & Warwickshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
