Westport Fuel (WPRT) & EDC Ink $20-Million Loan Deal
Westport Fuel Systems Inc. WPRT reported that it has signed a secured loan agreement worth $20 million with Export Development Canada (EDC). The loan will assist the commercial unveiling of the Westport High Pressure Direct Injection 2.0 (Westport HPDI 2.0) program.
With its maturity date on Dec 31, 2021 and an initial interest rate of 9% plus fees, the secured loan will be repaid in quarterly installments that will increase annually. However, on attaining certain milestones, the interest rate will reduce to 6%.
Westport HPDI 2.0 is an OEM integrated system, enabling heavy-duty trucks to run on natural gas and deliver performance equivalent to diesel-run engines, generating less CO2 emissions.
Westport Fuel Systems Inc Price and Consensus
Westport Fuel Systems Inc Price and Consensus | Westport Fuel Systems Inc Quote
Per Mark Senn, director of EDC’s cleantech team, the system developed by Westport Fuel is in line with Canada’s goal to fight climatic challenges and thus financing the program will help EDC to support the country’s environmental target.
Per Ashoka Achuthan, chief financial officer of Westport Fuel, the company has already started commercializing the Westport HPDI 2.0 system and expects to increase production in 2018.
Subject to customary conditions, the funding is expected to get completed in the coming weeks.
Westport Fuel has been assisted by the financial advisory firm, CoveView Advisors LLC in the loan transaction.
Price Performance
Shares of Westport Fuel have skyrocketed 159.3% year to date, outperforming the industry’s 32.2% rally.
Zacks Rank & Key Picks
Westport Fuel carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A few better-ranked stocks in the auto space are Denso Corporation DNZOY, Tower International, Inc. TOWR and Honda Motor Company HMC, all carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Denso has an expected long-term growth rate of 10.1%. In the last three months, shares of the company have been up 17.4%.
Tower International has an expected long-term growth rate of 10%. Shares of the company have surged 24.6% over the last three months.
Honda has an expected long-term growth rate of 3.8%. Year to date, shares of the company have gained 17.1%.
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