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Posted by: Pat McKeough
BREAKWATER RESOURCES $0.39 (Toronto symbol BWR; SI Rating: Speculative) (416-363-4798; www.breakwater.ca; Shares outstanding: 700.8 million; Market cap: $273.3 million; No dividends paid) is a Canadian-based mining company that mainly produces zinc. Breakwater has mines in Canada, Chile and Honduras.
The company earned $0.01 a share in the three months ended December 31, 2009. A year earlier, it lost $0.12 a share. …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
BIRCHCLIFF ENERGY $9.00 (Toronto symbol BIR; SI Rating: Speculative) (403-261-6401; www.birchcliffenergy.com; Units outstanding: 124.1 million; Market cap: $1.1 billion: No dividends paid) trades at a high multiple to cash flow because investors expect its production to rise as much as 40% over the next year or so. That would substantially boost cash flow.
Birchcliff develops, produces and explores for oil and …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
The Canadian consumer sector is highly competitive. Aside from other domestic retailers, Canadian consumer stocks are facing increasing competition from large U.S. discount retailers, like Wal-Mart and Costco.
As the competition between retailers continues to heat up, it’s more important than ever for investors to focus on Canadian consumer growth stocks with a proven ability to adapt and prosper in the …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
TRANSALTA CORP. $22 (Toronto symbol TA; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 218.4 million; Market cap: $4.8 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.7; Dividend yield: 5.3%; SI Rating: Average) operates roughly 80 unregulated power plants in Canada, the U.S. and Australia. Coal-fired plants account for about 57% of the power it generates. Hydroelectric and renewable sources account for 23%, and the …read more »
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CANADIAN TIRE CORP. $56 (Toronto symbol CTC.A; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 81.6 million; Market cap: $4.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.5; Dividend yield: 1.5%; SI Rating: Above Average) sells automotive, household and sporting goods through 479 stores. These account for roughly 65% of its revenue, and 55% of its earnings. Canadian Tire owns 70% of its stores, but …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
Canadian Tire is an example of what you might call a cyclical growth stock. It’s cyclical because its sales generally rise and fall with the economy. But it also has a growth element. Thanks to an aggressive store-renovation plan, its overall sales rose 70% in the past 10 years, even though it operates just 10% more stores. It has also …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
Utility stocks have more appeal than they used to, mainly because low interest rates have made bonds less appealing. (See later in this issue for our full analysis of why utilities are a better choice than bonds for your portfolio.)
We see all five of these electrical-power utilities as buys. That’s because they offer an attractive mix of safety, income and …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
MOLSON COORS CANADA INC. (Toronto symbols TPX.A $45 and TPX.B $45; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 185.5 million; Market cap: $8.3 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.7; Dividend yield: 2.1%; SI Rating: Average) is the world’s fifth-largest brewer by volume. Its top brands include Coors Light, Molson Canadian and Carling.
The company gets 49% of its gross profit from Canada, followed …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
When we’re picking stocks to recommend in our newsletters, including Wall Street Stock Forecaster, our publication that covers the U.S. markets, we like to see companies that benefit from steady revenue streams from high-quality assets, long-term contracts or other reliable sources.
That’s because this type of revenue helps cut a stock’s risk. It also cuts its exposure to the ups and …read more »
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Posted by: Pat McKeough
Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have gained popularity in recent years, mainly because many ETFs offer very low management fees. In addition to low fees, the best ETFs offer well-diversified, highly tax-efficient portfolios.
However, quality varies. The investment industry has created all sorts of ETFs. All too many exist to tap into popular, but risky, themes and fads, so you need to be …read more »
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