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These two leading mining stocks reported lower earnings for 2012. But they’re both working on important projects that they expect to boost their earnings in 2013 and beyond. Here’s our report from the latest edition of Wall Street Stock Forecaster. NEWMONT MINING (New York symbol NEM; www.newmont.com) gets 90% of its revenue from gold mines in the U.S., Australia and Peru. Copper, zinc and other metals supply the remaining 10%....

Pat McKeough responds to many personal questions for stock investing advice and to other questions on investment and the economy from the members of his Inner Circle. Every week, his comments and recommendations on the most intriguing questions of the past week go out to all Inner Circle members. And each week, we offer you one of the highlights from these Q&A sessions. While we reserve our buy-hold-sell advice for Inner Circle members, these excerpts provide a great deal of information and analysis on stocks we’ve covered for members of Pat’s Inner Circle....

Low interest rates continue to spur demand for dividend-paying stocks, such as these two electrical utilities. In the latest issue of The Successful Investor we examine the outlook for each of these Canadian dividend stocks. Both of these companies plan to split their shares on a 2-for-1 basis in May 2013. CANADIAN UTILITIES LTD. (Toronto symbols CU [class A non-voting] and CU.X [class B voting]; www.canadianutilities.com) distributes electricity and natural gas in Alberta. It also operates 18 power plants in Canada, Australia and the U.K. ATCO Ltd. (see below) owns 52.9% of the company....

Every Wednesday, we publish our “Investor Toolkit” series on TSI Network. Whether you’re a beginning or experienced investor, these weekly updates are designed to give you specific investment advice. Each Investor Toolkit update gives you a fundamental piece of investing strategy, and shows you how you can put it into practice right away....

Encana took its present form on December 1, 2009, after the old EnCana Corp. split itself into two new companies: the new Encana, which focuses on natural gas, and Cenovus Energy, which specializes in oil sands. Lower gas prices have pushed Encana’s shares down by about 36% since the split. Oil prices have weakened lately, but Cenovus’s stock is still up about 12%. Here is our latest report on these two energy stocks....

An American Depositary Receipt (ADR) is an investment unit for foreign companies that trade on U.S. stock markets. One ADR typically represents one or more shares of the overseas firm....

GOODYEAR TIRE & RUBBER CO. $12.02 (Nasdaq symbol GT; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (330-796-2122; www.goodyear.com; Shares outstanding: 245.5 million; Market cap: $3.0 billion; No dividends paid) is the world’s largest tire maker, with 52 plants in 22 countries.

In the quarter ended December 31, 2012, the weak global economy lowered Goodyear’s sales by 11.2%, to $5.05 billion from $5.68 billion a year earlier.

North American sales fell 10.4%, to $2.31 billion from $2.58 billion. As well, sales declined by 9.2% in Latin America; 16.2% in Europe, the Middle East and Africa; and 0.5% in Asia. Unfavourable foreign currency moves also lowered Goodyear’s revenue.
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CARFINCO FINANCIAL GROUP $9.32 (Toronto symbol CFN; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-888-486-4356; www.carfinco.com; Shares outstanding: 24.6 million; Market cap: $229.3 million; Dividend yield: 5.2%) provides car loans to consumers who don’t meet the criteria of traditional lenders, like banks.

In the three months ended December 31, 2012, Carfinco’s revenue rose 16.1%, to $19.2 million from $16.5 million a year earlier. The company loaned $40.1 million in the quarter, up 24.4% from $32.2 million.

Earnings rose 13.6%, to $5.0 million, or $0.21 a share, from $4.4 million, or $0.18 a share.
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ZARGON OIL & GAS $6.44 (Toronto symbol ZAR; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-264-9992; www.zargon.ca; Shares outstanding: 29.9 million; Market cap: $192.6 million; Dividend yield: 11.2%) produces natural gas and oil in Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and North Dakota. The company’s output is 67% oil and 33% natural gas.

In the three months ended December 31, 2012, Zargon produced 7,720 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down 17.0% from 9,278 barrels a year earlier. That’s because the company sold some less important properties and cut back on natural gas drilling in light of low gas prices. The production drop pushed down Zargon’s cash flow per share by 5.2%, to $0.55 from $0.58 a year earlier.

The company expects cash flow of $1.89 a share in 2013. It trades at 3.4 times that estimate.
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LEON’S FURNITURE LTD. $12.66 (Toronto symbol LNF; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (416-243- 7880; www.leons.ca; Shares outstanding: 70.6 million; Market cap: $893.8 million; Dividend yield: 3.2%) has received notice that the Canadian Commissioner of Competition will not challenge the company’s $700-million acquisition of The Brick (symbol BRK on Toronto) before the Competition Tribunal. Brick shareholders have already approved the takeover.

Leon’s is still a buy.

ADOBE SYSTEMS $44.90 (Nasdaq symbol ADBE; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (408-536-6000; www.adobe.com; Shares outstanding: 495.1 million; Market cap: $22.2 billion; No dividends paid) reports that its earnings excluding one-time items fell 37.5% in its fiscal 2013 first quarter, which ended March 1, 2013, to $177.9 million, or $0.35 a share. A year earlier, it earned $284.5 million, or $0.57 a share. Revenue declined 3.6%, to $1.01 billion from $1.05 billion.

Adobe is doing a good job of selling its Creative Cloud package of photo-editing and desktoppublishing programs as a subscription service instead of a one-time purchase. The company added 153,000 Creative Cloud subscribers during the quarter, to bring its total to 479,000.

As a result, its subscription revenue jumped 53.4% from a year earlier and now accounts for 22% of its overall revenue. Adobe still gets 67% of its revenue from direct software sales. Services and support supply the remaining 11%.
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FIRSTSERVICE CORP. $33.92 (Toronto symbol FSV; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (416-960-9500; www.firstservice.com; Shares outstanding: 28.8 million; Market cap: $976.9 million; No dividends paid) serves the following areas of the real estate market: commercial real estate, residential property management and property improvement. FirstService has more than 23,000 employees worldwide.

In the three months ended December 31, 2012, the company’s revenue rose 6.3%, to $632.5 million from $594.9 million a year earlier (all figures except share prices in U.S. dollars). Excluding one-time items, earnings per share jumped 30.8%, to $0.68 from $0.52.

Revenue rose at two of FirstService’s three divisions: commercial real estate (up 23%) and residential property management (up 10%).
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trong>AIMIA INC. $15.40 (Toronto symbol AIM; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (514-205-7315; www.aimia.com; Shares outstanding: 172.3 million; Market cap: $2.7 billion; Dividend yield: 4.2%) is buying the 25% of Nectar Italia that it doesn’t already own for $9 million.

The Nectar Italia loyalty program has signed up over 9.5 million members since its launch in March 2010. Its partners include a range of Italian retailers and participating shopping websites. As well, Nectar offers a credit card that lets holders earn points.

Aimia continues to diversify its operations geographically. That’s offsetting the risk of its Canadian business: Air Canada, a major Aeroplan partner, is vulnerable to labour disputes that can disrupt its service.
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ALARMFORCE INDUSTRIES $10.54 (Toronto symbol AF; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800- 267-2001; www.alarmforce.com; Shares outstanding: 12.2 million; Market cap: $128.6 million; Dividend yield: 0.9%) sells twoway voice alarm systems and monitoring services in Canada and increasingly in the U.S. It’s also adding to its prospects with its VideoRelay system, which it launched in October 2011.

In the three months ended January 31, 2013, AlarmForce’s sales rose 9.1%, to $11.9 million from $10.9 million a year earlier. Earnings almost doubled, to $1.4 million, or $0.11 a share, from $699,000, or $0.06.

AlarmForce’s revenue rose along with its subscriber base. Earnings were sharply higher because the company spent a lot less on marketing than in the yearearlier quarter, when it increased its advertising spending as it expanded into the U.S.
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BIRCHCLIFF ENERGY $7.96 (Toronto symbol BIR; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-261-6401; www.birchcliffenergy. com; Units outstanding: 141.8 million; Market cap: $1.1 billion; No dividends paid) produced an average of 26,655 barrels of oil equivalent a day (82% natural gas and 18% oil) in the quarter ended December 31, 2013. That was up 34.5% from 19,812 barrels a year earlier.

The production increase pushed up Birchcliff’s cash flow per share by 16.7%, to $0.28 from $0.24 a year earlier.

The stock trades at 7.1 times the company’s annual cash flow, based on the latest quarter.
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IMPERIAL METALS $11.27 (Toronto symbol III; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (604-669-8959; www.imperialmetals.com; Shares outstanding: 74.4 million; Market cap: $838.5 million) is a Vancouver-based mining firm that produces and explores for base and precious metals. Its producing assets include two B.C. mines: 100%-owned Mount Polley (copper and gold) and 50% of Huckleberry (copper and molybdenum). Japan’s Mitsubishi Materials owns 31.1% of Huckleberry, and Furukawa Co., Dowa Holdings and Marubeni Corp. own 6.3% each.

Imperial restarted Mount Polley in 2005 and continues to explore around the known deposit to increase the mine’s reserves and lengthen its life. Right now, Imperial expects Mount Polley to produce until mid- 2023.

The company is also developing its Red Chris copper/ gold property in northwestern B.C, where it could start up an open-pit mine as early as late 2014. The property holds as much as 9 billion pounds of copper and 13.8 million ounces of gold.
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SHERRITT INTERNATIONAL $4.33 (Toronto symbol S; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-800-704- 6698; www.sherritt.com; Shares outstanding: 296.9 million; Market cap: $1.3 billion; Dividend yield: 4.0%) is a diversified natural resource company that produces nickel, cobalt, thermal coal, oil and gas. It also manages 356 megawatts of power generation capacity in Cuba, with an additional 150 megawatts starting up this year.

The company is a major nickel producer, with operations in Cuba and Canada. As well, it is now starting up its 40%-owned Ambatovy mine on the island nation of Madagascar, off Africa’s east coast. Sherritt also produces oil and gas in Cuba, Spain and Pakistan and is Canada’s largest thermal coal producer.

In the three months ended December 31, 2012, Sherritt’s revenue fell 12.8%, to $467.9 million from $536.8 million a year earlier. Lower nickel and cobalt prices and a decline in thermal coal sales were the main reasons for the drop. Cash flow fell 56.4%, to $39.5 million, or $0.13 a share, from $90.7 million, or $0.31. That was due to the lower revenue and higher production costs.
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WESTJET AIRLINES $24.93 (Toronto symbol WJA; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (1-877-493-7853; www.westjet.com; Shares outstanding: 124.1 million; Market cap: $3.1 billion; Dividend yield: 1.6%) is upgrading its interline agreement with Air France to a full codesharing arrangement.

Through code-sharing deals, airlines sell seats on one another’s planes using the same two-letter code.

Code-sharing agreements are especially valuable for attracting business passengers, because they let customers seamlessly connect between flights, and gain frequent-flyer points for the entire distance travelled.

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MCCOY CORP. $4.29 (Toronto symbol MCB; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (780-453-8451; www.mccoyglobal.com; Shares outstanding: 26.6 million; Market cap: $114.1 million; Dividend yield: 4.7%) operates through two divisions: Mobile Solutions and Energy Products and Services.

Energy Products and Services sells hydraulic equipment for drilling rigs. This equipment includes power tongs, which are large, wrench-like tools that tighten and loosen the pipe in the drill hole.

Mobile Solutions builds heavy-duty trailers for U.S. and Canadian clients in the oil and gas, wind energy, infrastructure and construction industries.
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WAJAX CORP. $35.88 (Toronto symbol WJX; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (905-212-3300; www.wajax.ca; Shares outstanding:16.7 million; Market cap: $599.2 million; Dividend yield: 9.0%) sells and services heavy equipment, including cranes and forklifts. It also sells related parts (such as bearings, motors, hoses and fittings) and power systems (including diesel engines and transmissions).

Wajax operates through 128 dealerships across Canada. Its customers are in the natural resource, construction, manufacturing, industrial processing and transportation industries.

In the three months ended December 31, 2012, Wajax’s revenue fell 3.2%, to $364.9 million from $377.2 million a year earlier. Earnings declined 14.3%, to $14.2 million, or $0.85 a share, from $16.6 million, or $1.00 a share.
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BMTC GROUP $13.70 (Toronto symbol GBT.A; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (514- 648-5757; No website; Shares outstanding: 47.5 million; Market cap: $650.8 million; Dividend yield: 1.8%) is one of Quebec’s largest retailers of furniture, electronics and household appliances.

In the three months ended December 31, 2012, the company’s sales fell 6.9%, to $180.7 million from $194.2 million a year earlier. Earnings per share fell 15.6%, to $0.27 from $0.32.

The company’s near-term outlook is uncertain, and the shares trade at 14.6 times BMTC’s latest 12 months of earnings. That’s on the high side for a retailer with limited near-term growth prospects.
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ALIMENTATION COUCHE-TARD $58.75 (Toronto symbol ATD.B: TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (1-800-361-2612; www.couche-tard.com; Shares outstanding: 179.4 million; Market cap: $10.5 billion; Dividend yield: 0.6%) is the largest convenience store operator in Canada, with over 2,000 outlets. It also has nearly 3,700 U.S. stores. The Canadian stores operate under the Couche-Tard and Mac’s banners, while the U.S. stores mainly use the Circle K brand.

In the three months ended February 3, 2013, Couche-Tard’s sales jumped 75.2%, to $11.6 billion from $6.6 billion a year earlier. The gain mostly came from Norway’s Statoil Fuel & Retail ASA, which Couche-Tard bought for $2.7 billion in June 2012 (all figures except share price in U.S. dollars). Excluding one-time items, earnings rose 72.3%, to $153.2 million, or $0.81 a share, from $88.9 million, or $0.49 a share.

Couche-Tard’s outlook is positive. It continues to introduce more-profitable products at its North American stores, including new drinks and improved fresh and takeout food. There is lots of potential for it to sell similar items at the Statoil gas station chain.
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AEROPOSTALE INC. $12.76 (New York symbol ARO; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (646-485-5410; www.aeropostale.com; Shares outstanding: 78.3 million; Market cap: $999.1 million; No dividends paid) is a mall-based retailer of casual clothing and accessories. It now has 984 stores in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico that mainly target 14- to 17-year-old women and men. Aeropostale’s 103 P.S. from Aeropostale stores in the U.S. are aimed at seven- to 12-year-olds.

In the three months ended February 2, 2013, Aeropostale’s sales fell 1.3%, to $797.7 million from $808.4 million a year earlier. Same-store sales declined 8%, compared with a 7% decline a year ago.

Aeropostale’s earnings before one-time items fell 46.6%, to $19.0 million, or $0.24 a share, from $35.6 million, or $0.44 a share, a year earlier.
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The price of natural gas has doubled in the past year. However, natural gas stocks have largely ignored that rise and either remained depressed or lagged behind gas prices.

Maybe that’s because investors take it for granted that winters will remain warm, thanks to global warming. But if that’s how things turn out, rising temperatures will raise demand for air conditioning, which runs on gaspowered electricity plants.

At the same time, environmentalists mostly oppose expanding facilities for liquefied natural gas. These projects would let producers ship more of their surplus gas overseas, where natural gas prices are much higher.
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BELLATRIX EXPLORATION $5.93 (Toronto symbol BXE; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-266-8670; www.bellatrixexploration- .com; Shares outstanding: 107.9 million; Market cap: $639.8 million; No dividends paid) produces natural gas (70% of output) and oil (30%) in Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan.

In the three months ended December 31, 2012, Bellatrix’s production rose 32.1%, to 18,763 barrels of oil equivalent per day (including gas) from 14,209 a year earlier. Cash flow per share increased 7.1%, to $0.30 from $0.28.

Bellatrix continues to have considerable exploration success thanks to its expertise in horizontal drilling (or drilling down and “across” to oil and gas deposits) and fracturing, which involves pumping water, chemicals and other materials into rock to allow oil and gas to flow upward.
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