Spectra Energy (SE): Dividends Keep Flowing

Investors seeking a high dividend yield stock for their portfolio should give some consideration to Spectra Energy (SE) which offers a handy 5% dividend yield.

A major player in the North American natural gas sector, Spectra (SE) transmits, stores, distributes and processes natural gas for a variety of applications. The company’s' natural gas operations include approximately 19,100 miles of transmission pipeline and more than 285 billion cubic feet of storage capacity in the United States and Canada.

Spectra Energy (SE) has a long trading history having established its Canadian operations in 1911 and its US operations in 1929. Natural gas is one of the cleanest conventional sources of energy in the US and provides about a quarter of North America’s current energy consumption. It’s safe to say it is a critical sector of the economy.

Reporting first quarter earnings in May, Spectra (SE) reported net income from controlling interests of $358 million, or $0.55 diluted earnings per share, compared with $298 million, or $0.47 diluted earnings per share, in the prior year. That’s a 17% increase. Commenting on the first quarter, Greg Ebel, President and Chief Executive Officer told investors: "We achieved very good first quarter results, which reflect sound performance from each of our businesses and the benefit of improved commodity prices. This quarter's results have given investors a very clear picture of the robust benefits of Spectra Energy's (SE) broad-based portfolio of natural gas infrastructure assets."

Management at Spectra (SE) is also not sitting back on its laurels and is investing in a number of capital projects to expand its offering and drive growth in the coming years. "We continue to successfully execute on more than $3 billion in expansion projects that are fueling our 8 to 10 percent annual earnings growth through 2012," concluded Ebel.

For investors looking for a high dividend yielding stock and seeking access to the critical energy sector, Spectra Energy (SE) trading on a 13 times price to earnings multiple, may be a stock for consideration.

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