TC Energy Maintained at Neutral at UBS Following Portland System Sale; Price Target Kept at C$53.00
11:33 AM EST, 03/05/2024 (MT Newswires) -- UBS on Tuesday reiterated its neutral rating on the shares of TC Energy (TRP.TO, TRP) and its C$53.00 price target after the power and pipeline company and its partner agreed to sell the Portland Natural Gas system for US$1.14 billion.
"BMO, TRP along with its partner, Northern New England Investment Company announced an agreement to sell Portland Natural Gas system for USD$1.14B (net $545MM to TRP) at an 11x multiple on '23 EV/EBITDA. The deal narrows the funding gap and helps TRP meet its 4.75x YE leverage target. We view the news as a positive step towards TRP's ultimate goal of immediate deleveraging - we expect investors will also focus on 1) more asset sales still being needed, 2) evolving earnings mix. We note this asset sale comes post its recent analyst day where TRP reiterated its intention for C$3B in asset sales by YE24. We note that the transaction is expected to close by mid-2024 and the cash proceeds will be split pro-rata according to the current PNGTS ownership interests (TC Energy 61.7%, Northern New England Investment Company 38.3%)," the investment bank noted.
(MT Newswires covers equity, commodity and economic research from major banks and research firms in North America, Asia and Europe. Research providers may contact us here: https://www.mtnewswires.com/contact-us)
Price: 54.43, Change: +0.43, Percent Change: +0.80