gdt@cbnscs.UUCP (thurman x4825) (03/25/84)
If its on the NYSE and/or pays a dividend, then chances are pretty good I'm not interested; however, a good utility stock in an IRA sounds like a decent thing to do. A 10% appreciation accompanied by a 10% yield gives you a 20% return doesn't it? Utilities, be them electric or gas, just don't excite me. And it really bothers me that, even though I work for AT&T, I cannot offer an opinion on which regional I think will do best (even though I like those that are aggressively entering into the cellular telephone business - Ameritech has Chicago up and going, plus it has that high-tech sort of sounding name). Anyway, one utility does appeal to me - Pacific Power and Light. In addition to being your typical run of the mill electric utility, Pacific P&L owns 90% of the outstanding stock in a company called Pacific Telecom, which is a successful telephone utility operation that does business in our great Northwest. Also, Pacific P&L has considerable coal holdings. Supposedly, holding on to coal right now is a little like having a a nickel - it buys you little to nothing. Nonetheless, coal may not always be a value-less asset, it is an energy source, and until we are guaranteed that alternative power sources are around and available, coal could make a comeback. Pacific P&L currently sells for 22 1/4 a share. Its 52 week high has been 25 1/2, while its 52 week low was 20. It has a running multiple of 5 and current yield of 9.7%. I'm a Bull on the market and I think we will see new highs before it goes sour. When? I don't know. It could be 2, even 3 years away. In the interim, a nice yielding stock could make the wait a little easier. P.S. I do not make a market in Pacific Power and Light. Thurman Columbus Oh