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As investors, we'd all like to turn every dollar invested into two as quickly as possible. However, while some investors take the risky route and invest in stocks they hope will double, I have uncovered three that have clear visibility to double their earnings over the next few years. That visible earnings growth should provide ample fuel to drive their stock prices up triple digits as well.
Drilling for triple digit returns
Canadian oil and gas company Encana (OVV 0.64%) recently completed a major turnaround plan. It sold off its lower margin natural gas assets and used that cash to pay down debt and acquire higher margin oil-rich growth assets. As a result, the company is in the position to restart its growth engine. However, unlike many oil companies that are focusing on production growth, Encana's aim is to drive robust cash flow growth.
By capturing cost reductions and productivity improvements, Encana possesses a vast inventory of drilling locations that will deliver a 35% after-tax rate of return at current commodity prices. Because of that, the company projects that it can grow its production by 60% over the next five years. More importantly, that high margin growth should drive cash flow up by a remarkable 300%. That triple-digit cash flow growth could more than double Encana's stock price even if oil and gas prices remain low.
A pipeline of consistent growth
Canadian energy infrastructure company Enbridge (ENB 2.71%) recently announced the transformational acquisition of U.S. rival Spectra Energy (SE). That combination gives the company clear visibility to grow its available cash flow per share by 12% to 14% annually through 2019 because the companies have more than $20 billion in fee-based growth projects under development. That solidifies Enbridge's estimation that it can grow its dividend per share by a 10% to 12% annual growth rate through 2024.
The math for Enbridge is pretty compelling. When we factor in its current dividend yield of 4% and add in its cash flow growth projections, that equates to a potential average total return of 16% per year through the end of the decade. Using the rule of 72 (a simple calculation to find the number of years it would take for an investment to double in value), Enbridge could double an investor's money in as little as four-and-a-half years by hitting its cash flow growth target.
Dropping down a ton of growth
Midstream MLP Phillips 66 Partners (PSXP) has an ambitious growth plan in place thanks to the support of its parent company refining giant Phillips 66 (PSX 1.16%). Through a combination of organic growth projects, third-party asset acquisitions, and drop down transactions with Phillips 66, the partnership projects to grow its EBITDA from the current run rate of $400 million up to $1.1 billion by 2018. That earnings growth should enable Phillips 66 Partners to continue growing its distribution to investors by a healthy 30% compound annual rate.
That projected growth rate is more than just an educated guess because the company has visible growth opportunities on the horizon. For example, Phillips 66 currently owns several midstream assets that generate about $600 million in EBITDA that it can drop down to its MLP. The drop down of those assets alone could double the partnerships' underlying earnings. In addition to that, Phillips 66 Partners has $300 million in organic growth projects under development. The clarity of its ability to more than double underlying earnings over the next few years increases the likelihood that the company could double investors' money over the same timeframe.
Investor takeaway
What sets this trio apart from most other growth stocks is the clear visibility of future earnings growth. All three expect to more than double earnings over the next few years without any changes to the macroeconomic environment or other external factors. Because of that, the only thing these companies need to do is execute their growth plans, and investors should reap the windfall.
