WAJAX CORP. $24.10 (Toronto symbol WJX; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (905-212-3300; www.wajax.ca; Shares outstanding:16.8 million; Market cap: $404.4 million; Dividend yield: 4.2%) sells and services cranes, forklifts and other heavy equipment. It also provides related parts (such as bearings, motors, hoses and fittings) and power systems (including diesel engines and transmissions).
The company’s customers are in the natural resource, construction, manufacturing and transportation industries.
In the three months ended December 31, 2014, Wajax’s revenue fell 1.4%, to $386.1 million from $391.7 million a year earlier. The decline was mostly due to lower sales to mining companies and oil and gas customers.
Earnings fell 8.2%, to $11.2 million, or $0.67 a share, from $12.2 million, or $0.73.
Dividend cut a prudent move
Wajax needs sustained growth in Canadian oil and gas drilling and mining to keep its revenue and earnings rising, but its long-term outlook is positive.
Meanwhile, Wajax is cutting its dividend while it waits for its markets to rebound. Its payout will fall from $0.20 monthly to $0.25 quarterly, for a 4.2% yield.
The company’s long-term debt of $180.9 million is a manageable 44.7% of its market cap. The stock trades at just 10.4 times Wajax’s forecast 2015 earnings of $2.30 a share—but that estimate could prove optimistic if commodity prices are slow to recover.
Wajax is still a buy.