Feature Article

Half a dozen European utilities and telecoms cut dividends in March. The happy count from April: Zero. Several companies this month even graduated from the Endangered Dividends List.

We run through the first quarter’s biggest winners and biggest losers, while revisiting the investment themes that should outperform in 2014.

Soft economic growth and dysfunctional regulation have brought payout cuts for five European power, telecom and water providers. And all but one signal further reductions in the next 12 to 18 months.

The Conrad's Utility Investor Portfolios have beaten benchmark interest rates since I launched on July 31, 2013 - a clear sign my recommended dividend-paying stocks follow earnings, not interest rates. And with another round of earnings due later this month, all of our companies are set to prove their worth to investors again.

America's leading telecom doubles down on its US business with a key acquisition.

Utility history is rife with poor diversification, and that appears to be the consensus bet against WGL Holdings (NYSE: WGL), the regulated gas distribution company for the District of Columbia, suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia. But an A+ rating on top of an attractive yield could change skeptics' minds.

Conrad's Utility Investor has three actively managed portfolios--Aggressive Income, Conservative Income and Top 10 Drips--each of which is tailored to a specific investment style and risk tolerance. We review each model portfolio's objective, book a 60 percent gain on one of our winners and shift one of our Conservative Income Portfolio holdings to the Aggressive Income Portfolio.

The newest member of the Conservative Income Portfolio operates regulated and unregulated utility businesses and is poised for impressive distribution growth.

This Aggressive Portfolio holding remains one of our favorite turnaround stories.

TransAlta Corp (TSX: TA, NYSE: TAC) has cut its quarterly dividend by 37.9 percent to 18 cents Canadian, starting with the April 1 payment. The new level is low enough to maintain at least the next couple years. As a result, I’m removing the company from the Endangered Dividends List.