Industry leadership gives them an edge

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RUSSEL METALS $21.53 (Toronto symbol RUS; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (905-819-7777; www.russelmetals.com; Shares outstanding: 67.0 million; Market cap: $1.3 billion; Dividend yield: 5.6%) is one of North America’s largest metal distributors. The company serves its roughly 30,000 customers through a network of 50 locations in Canada and 12 in the U.S. In the three months ended June 30, 2011, Russel’s earnings per share rose 26.8%, to $0.52 from $0.41 a year earlier. Revenue rose 22.1%, to $618.6 million from $506.6 million. The company distributed more steel during the quarter, even though flooding in western Canada pushed down demand for pipe for oil drilling. Steel prices weakened, but the company was able to keep its profits high, because it does a good job of controlling its costs. Second dividend hike this year Russel raised its quarterly dividend by 9.1% with the September 2011 payment, to $0.30 from $0.275. That follows a 10% increase in February 2011. The stock now yields 5.6%. Further increases are likely. Russel…