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Coupang Inc. operates in a competitive market, but its growth prospects are positive, especially with its expansion into Taiwan.
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A: Daktronics Inc., $8.30, symbol DAKT on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 44.0 million; Market cap: $365.0 million; www.daktronics.com), is one of the world’s leading suppliers of electronic scoreboards, large electronic display systems and digital messaging systems. Its products range from small scoreboards that cost less than $1,000 to large custom displays that sell for over $40 million. Customers include stadiums, arenas and numerous U.S. state transportation departments. Daktronics’s sales rose 39.4%, from $441.7 million in 2011 to $615.9 million in 2015 (fiscal years ended April 30). Even so, the company’s profit is erratic. Due to higher research spending, its earnings fell from $0.34 a share (or a total of $14.2 million) in 2011 to $0.20 a share (or $8.5 million) in 2012. Earnings turned around in 2013 to $0.53 a share (or $22.8 million), but fell to $0.51 a share (or $22.2 million) in 2014. They dropped again in 2015, to $0.47 a share (or $20.9 million)....
A: Carmanah Technologies Corp., $4.72, symbol CMH on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 24.6 million; Market cap: $116.2 million; www.carmanah.com), sells solar-powered LED lighting as well as other solar-powered systems. The company contracts out most of its manufacturing. Carmanah’s light beacons are used for marine navigation and on runways and roads. Other uses include school-zone flashers, transit stops and internally lit traffic signs. The company also makes lighting for industrial users, including warning lights, equipment-marking lights, and railway-track and bridge markers. Since Carmanah began operating in 1996, it has sold lighting for over 400,000 installations in 110 countries....
Pat: What is your recommendation on Loral Space & Communications? I believe it owns Telesat. Thanks.
A: Loral Space & Communications Ltd., $36.51 symbol LORL on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 30.9 million; Market cap: $1.1 billion, www.loral.com), is a holding company with interests in two satellite communication providers: Loral holds 62.8% of Ottawa-based Telesat. (Canada’s Public Sector Pension Investment Board owns the remaining 37.2%.) This business owns 15 satellites that distribute video signals for broadcasters, cable networks and satellite TV providers. Its clients include major broadcasters in Canada and the U.S. as well as satellite TV providers such as Bell TV in Canada and EchoStar/DISH Network in the U.S. In Addition, Telesat provides data and voice transmission services to businesses and government departments. Loral also owns 56.0% of XTAR, a joint venture with a group of Spanish telecommunications providers. XTAR provides satellite communication services to U.S. and European military and diplomatic clients....
A: Innophos Holdings Inc., $35.61, symbol IPHS on Nasdaq (Shares outstanding: 19.3 million; Market cap: $689.2 million, www.innophos.com), makes specialized phosphate-based ingredients for food makers, drug manufacturers and industrial clients. These additives improve the quality of a broad range of products such as enhancing the flavour of soft drinks and the cleaning power of detergents. The company operates plants in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and China. Innophos first sold shares to the public in November 2006 and began trading on the Nasdaq exchange at $12.00. The company’s sales rose 4.2%, from $810.5 million in 2011 to $844.1 million in 2013. Sales then fell to $839.2 million in 2014, and to $789.1 million in 2015. That’s mainly because the higher U.S. dollar has made the company’s products more expensive in other countries. China has also cut or dropped certain taxes to spur its exports of fertilizer and other phosphate products. That has forced down global prices....