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REITMANS (CANADA) LTD. $11.97 (Toronto symbol RET.A; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (514-384-1140; www.reitmans.com; Shares outstanding: 65.5 million; Market cap: $784.0 million; Dividend yield: 6.7%) owns 925 women’s clothing stores across Canada.

The chain consists of 364 Reitmans, 154 Penningtons, 153 Smart Set, 114 Addition Elle, 74 Thyme Maternity and 66 RW & Co. stores.

In the three months ended April 28, 2012, Reitmans lost $53,000, or nil per share, compared to a profit of $624,000, or $0.01 a share, a year earlier. The company’s sales were down 1.0%, to $217.1 million from $219.3 million. Same-store sales declined 0.7%.

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AEROPOSTALE INC. $20.26 (New York symbol ARO; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (646-485-5410; www.aeropostale.com; Shares outstanding: 81.3 million; Market cap: $1.6 billion; No dividends paid) has hired 15-year-old Chloe Grace Moretz as a celebrity endorser.

Ms. Moretz has recently appeared in movies such as Dark Shadows and Hugo. She also starred in the cult hit Kick-Ass.

Over the last few quarters, Aeropostale has focused on more fashionable clothing instead of the basics. The company hopes Ms. Moretz will draw attention to these products and boost its sales.

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DOREL INDUSTRIES $27.77 (Toronto symbol DII.B; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (514-731-0000; www.dorel.com; Shares outstanding: 31.9 million; Market cap: $885.9 million; Dividend yield: 2.2%) makes a wide range of products, including ready-to-assemble home and office furniture; juvenile products, such as car seats, strollers, high chairs, toddler beds and cribs; recreational products, including bicycles; and home furnishings. It has 5,000 employees and plants in 22 countries.

In the three months ended March 31, 2012, Dorel’s sales rose 2.2%, to $621.1 million from $607.8 million a year earlier (all figures except share price in U.S. dollars).

Revenue at the company’s recreation/leisure division rose 10.2% on higher sales to U.S., European and Japanese retailers. That offset weaker revenue at the other divisions. Earnings per share fell 4.2%, to $0.91 from $0.95 a year earlier. That was largely due to lower profits in the competitive home furnishing segment.

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STANTEC INC. $27.36 (Toronto symbol STN; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (780-917-7288; www.stantec.com; Shares outstanding: 45.7 million; Market cap: $1.3 billion; Dividend yield: 2.2%) sells a range of consulting, project delivery, design/build and technology services. The company’s clients operate in a wide variety of markets, including industry, environment, transportation and construction.

In the three months ended March 31, 2012, Stantec’s revenue rose 7.4%, to $439.1 million from $408.7 million a year earlier. Acquisitions were one reason for the gains. Stantec is also working on several new projects. Earnings rose 4.5%, to $24.9 million, or $0.55 a share, from $23.8 million, or $0.52 a share.

Stantec continues to grow by acquisition. In 2011, it bought five companies. Its purchases this year include engineering-consulting firm Cimarron Engineering Ltd., which develops, designs, installs and maintains oil and gas pipeline systems and station facilities. Demand for these services is growing quickly.

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NEW GOLD $9.84 (Toronto symbol NGD; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (888-315- 9715; www.newgold.com; Shares outstanding: 461.7 million; Market cap: $4.5 billion; No dividends paid) has started up its fourth mine. The $765- million New Afton gold mine in B.C. processed the first ore through its mill on June 28, 2012. New Gold’s target for commercial production at New Afton, defined as 30 days of operation at 60% capacity (or 6,600 tonnes per day) remains August 2012.

New Afton should produce an average of 85,000 ounces of gold and 75 million pounds of copper annually over its 12-year life.

There is still room to expand the mine’s reserves and increase its production through exploration drilling.

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IAMGOLD $10.71 (Toronto symbol IMG; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (1-888-464-9999; www.iamgold.com; Shares outstanding: 376.1 million; Market cap: $4.0 billion; Dividend yield: 2.4%) owns 38% of the Sadiola mine and 40% of the Yatela mine, both located in Mali; 90% of its new Essakane gold mine in Burkina Faso; 100% of the Doyon mine in Quebec; and 100% of the Rosebel mine in Suriname, South America.

In addition, IAMGold has a 1% royalty interest in the Diavik diamond mine in the Northwest Territories. It also owns the Niobec niobium mine in Quebec. Niobium is a rare metal that when used as an additive makes steel stronger, more heat resistant and easier to weld.

In the three months ended March 31, 2012, IAMGold’s revenue fell 2.4%, to $404.2 million from $414.0 million a year earlier. Cash flow per share fell 14.0%, to $0.49 from $0.57. The declines came from lower gold sales, partly because some shipments were delayed until after the quarter ended. That was partially offset by higher gold prices and niobium sales.

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CAMECO CORP. $22.34 (Toronto symbol CCO; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (306-956-6200; www.cameco.com; Shares outstanding: 395.3 million; Market cap: $8.8 billion; Dividend yield 1.8%) is the world’s largest uranium producer. It supplies roughly 25% of global production and has large, high-grade reserves, low-cost operations, significant market share and a number of uranium mines.

Cameco also holds a 31.6% stake in Ontario’s Bruce Power partnership, which operates four of the eight reactors at the Bruce plant, North America’s largest nuclear power complex.

In the three months ended March 31, 2012, Cameco’s revenue rose 22.1%, to $563 million from $461 million a year earlier. It sold more uranium in the latest quarter, and its selling prices also rose. Earnings per share jumped 47.6%, to $0.31 from $0.21.

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SASOL LTD. (ADR) $43.01 (New York symbol SSL; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (082 -883-9697; www.sasol.com; ADRs outstanding: 644.7 million; Market cap: $27.7 billion; Dividend yield: 3.3%) paid $2.2 billion last year for a 50% interest in two major shale gas properties held by Talisman Energy in northeastern B.C.

The partners were investigating whether it would be feasible to build a gas-to-liquids plant that would use this gas. However, Talisman has said that it is not interested in pursuing this project right now. Instead, it will focus on increasing its production.

Talisman and Sasol will continue to develop the two shale gas properties, although they will likely slow work on them while they wait for natural gas prices to recover.

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DEVON ENERGY CORP. $58.73 (New York symbol DVN; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (405-235-3611; www.dvn.com; Shares outstanding: 404.4 million; Market cap: $23.8 billion; Dividend yield: 1.4%) is one of the largest U.S.-based oil and natural gas explorers and producers. Its production mix is 63% gas and 37% oil.

Last year, Devon completed the sale of all of its international and Gulf of Mexico properties, which it saw as risky and expensive to develop.

The company is now focused on its North American properties, which include conventional production, shale oil in Texas and oil sands in Alberta.

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CIMAREX ENERGY $58.40 (New York symbol XEC; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (303-295-3995; www.cimarex.com; Shares outstanding: 85.7 million; Market cap: $5.0 billion; Dividend yield: 0.8%) produces and explores for oil and natural gas. Gas makes up 53% of its output.

Cimarex’s properties are in the Mid-Continent region of the U.S., which includes Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas; the Permian Basin of western Texas and southeastern New Mexico; and the Texas Gulf Coast.

In the three months ended March 31, 2012, Cimarex’s production averaged 603.5 million cubic feet of natural gas equivalent per day (including oil). That’s up 2.5%, from 590 million cubic feet a year earlier.

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MART RESOURCES $1.50 (Toronto symbol MMT; TSINetwork Rating: Speculative) (403-270 -1841; www.martresources.com; Shares outstanding: 337.0 million; Market cap: $505.5 million; Dividend yield: 13.3%) is up over 40% since late June, when it declared a special dividend of $0.10 a share, payable on August 8. Mart will then pay quarterly dividends of $0.05 a share starting in September.

The stock is now up 328.6% since we first recommended it in our May 2010 issue at $0.35.

Mart produces oil at its 50%- held Umusadege field in the Niger Delta region of southern Nigeria.

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BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS $21.70 (New York symbol BR: TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk) (201-714-3000; www.broadridge.com; Shares outstanding: 124.9 million; Market cap: $2.7 billion; Dividend yield: 3.0%) serves the investment industry in three main areas: investor communications; securities processing; and transaction clearing. The company processes 90% of all proxy votes in the U.S.

Broadridge’s earnings rose 11.0% in the three months ended March 31, 2012, to $36.2 million from $32.6 million a year earlier. Earnings per share rose 12.0%, to $0.28 from $0.25, on fewer shares outstanding. Sales rose 3.8%, to $547.0 million from $527.1 million.

Contributions from recently purchased companies helped push up Broadridge’s latest results. As well, the company continues to do a good job of attracting new clients and holding on to existing ones.

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This is the latest in a series of video interviews in which Pat McKeough will give his advice on a variety of topics. Some will deal with his overall investment philosophy, others on specific investment strategies, and still others will be comments on events that are affecting the markets and the economy. This time, the subject is real estate investing, as Pat replies to questions that followed his earlier video on the home as an investment. (View the post here: Do You Think of Your House as an Investment?) Several readers insisted that they saw their houses as a good source of building net worth, whether through its intrinsic value or as a source of collateral for buying stocks. Pat has a few words of caution on both of those points.
Real Estate Investing: Your House as a Source of Building Wealth ...

We’ve always placed a high value on a strong record of paying dividends, mainly because it provides something of a pedigree for stocks we recommend. After all, you can’t fake a record of dividends. It takes a lot of success and high-quality management for a company to have the cash and the determination to declare and pay a dividend every year for five or 10 years or more. It’s not something you can create on the spur of the moment. Now many investors have come to share our high regard for dividends, especially as a source of retirement income. However, some take this reliance on dividend stocks to extremes. They put too much faith in a history of dividend payments. They think of a stock with a good dividend history as the next best thing to a government bond....

Every Wednesday, we publish our “Investor Toolkit” series on TSI Network. Whether you’re a new 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. Today’s tip: “Starting out your investing career the wrong way could force you into years of catching up.”...

STANLEY BLACK & DECKER INC. (New York symbol SWK; www.stanleyblackanddecker.com) is one of the world’s largest makers of hand and power tools for consumers. Its top-selling brands include Stanley, Black & Decker, FatMax and Powerlock. This business supplied 51% of Stanley’s 2011 sales and 46% of its earnings. The company’s building-security division makes locks, automatic doors and gates. It also monitors properties for its clients, typically through closed-circuit audio and TV systems. This division accounts for 25% of Stanley’s sales and 27% of its earnings....

Pat McKeough responds to many personal questions on buying stocks and other investment topics 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. This past week, an Inner Circle member asked us about a company that clearly benefits when the global economy is doing well. This American heavy-equipment manufacturer already makes the majority of its sales outside the U.S. and it’s looking to developing economies to fuel even more growth....

H&R REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST $24.16 (Toronto symbol HR.UN; Units outstanding: 181.0 million; Market cap: $4.4 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 4.8%; www.hr-reit.com) and Dundee REIT (Toronto symbol D.UN) have agreed to buy Scotia Plaza, a 68-storey office building in downtown Toronto, from Bank of Nova Scotia (see page 41) for $1.3 billion.

Dundee REIT will own two-thirds of the property, and H&R will own the remaining third.

Scotia Plaza contains about 2 million square feet of office and retail space across four connected buildings. Scotiabank will remain as the anchor tenant.

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PRIMARIS RETAIL REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST $22.79 (Toronto symbol PMZ.UN; Units outstanding: 87.8 million; Market cap: $2.0 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 5.4%; www.primarisreit.com) owns large malls in medium-sized Canadian cities and suburban areas. In all, it owns 33 properties that contain 13.7 million square feet of leasable area.

Primaris has 43% of its properties in Ontario, followed by Alberta, 16%; B.C., 14%; Quebec, 14%; Saskatchewan, 9%; Manitoba, 3% and New Brunswick, 1%. Primaris has a 96.7% occupancy rate.

In the quarter ended March 31, 2012, acquisitions pushed up Primaris’s revenue by 22.6%, to $100.4 million from $81.9 million a year earlier. Cash flow rose 30.8%, to $32.7 million from $25.0 million. Cash flow per unit rose 8.3%, to $0.393 from $0.363, on more units outstanding. The trust yields 5.4%.

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RIOCAN REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST $26.57 (Toronto symbol REI.UN; Units outstanding: 285.0 million; Market cap: $7.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 5.2%; www.riocan.com) is Canada’s largest REIT. It has interests in 333 shopping malls in Canada, including 10 under development. These properties contain over 91 million square feet of leasable area.

RioCan also owns stakes in 46 malls in the U.S. through joint ventures. In addition, it owns 14% of Cedar Shopping Centers, a U.S. REIT whose malls are mainly in the northeastern U.S.

In the quarter ended March 31, 2012, RioCan’s revenue rose 15.6%, to $274 million from $237 million a year earlier. Cash flow per unit rose 5.7%, to $0.37 from $0.35. The units yield 5.2%.

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BELL ALIANT INC. $26 (Toronto symbol BA; Shares outstanding: 227.8 million; Market cap: $5.9 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 7.3%; www.aliant.ca) earned $0.45 a share in the three months ended March 31, 2012. That’s up 2.3% from $0.44 a year earlier. Revenue was unchanged at $682.0 million.

Strong demand for high-speed Internet and TV services offset lower revenue from traditional phone (or land line) subscribers and long-distance calls.

Bell Aliant’s high-speed fibre optic systems now reach 516,000 homes. It plans to expand this to 650,000 homes by the end of 2012.

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BCE INC. $41.54 (Toronto symbol BCE; Shares outstanding: 773.6 million; Market cap: $32.1 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 5.2%; www.bce.ca) is teaming up with a group of other investors, including the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, to buy privately held Q9 networks Inc.

Toronto-based Q9 provides data-storage and web-hosting services to businesses across Canada. It has 11 data centres in Ontario, Alberta and B.C.

This investment will help BCE take advantage of growing demand from business clients for reliable cloud-computing services (the general term for shifting software and data off of users’ machines and onto service providers’ machines via the Internet). The company already operates six data centres. It will open a seventh later this year.

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POWERSHARES QQQ ETF $62.52 (Nasdaq symbol QQQQ; buy or sell through brokers; www.invescopowershares.com), formerly called Nasdaq 100 Trust Shares, holds the stocks that represent the Nasdaq 100 Index. That index is made up of the 100 largest shares on the Nasdaq exchange, based on market cap.

The Nasdaq 100 Index contains shares of companies in a number of major industries, including computer hardware and software, telecommunications, retail/wholesale trade and biotechnology. It does not contain financial companies. The fund’s expenses are about 0.20% of its assets.

The index’s highest-weighted stocks are Apple, Microsoft, Qualcomm, Google, Cisco Systems, Intel, Amazon.com, Oracle Corp., Comcast Corp. and Amgen Inc.

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SPDR DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL AVERAGE ETF $123.93 (New York symbol DIA; buy or sell through brokers; www.spdrs.com) holds the 30 stocks that make up the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The fund’s top holdings are IBM, ExxonMobil, Chevron Corp., 3M, Wal-Mart Stores, McDonald’s Corp., Coca-Cola Co., Caterpillar Inc., United Technologies and Boeing. The fund’s expenses are about 0.18% of its assets.

SPDR Dow Jones ETF is a buy.

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SPDR S&P 500 ETF $131.97 (New York symbol SPY; buy or sell through brokers; www.spdrs.com) holds the stocks in the S&P 500 Index, which consists of 500 major U.S. stocks that are chosen based on their market cap, liquidity and industry group.

The index’s highest-weighted stocks are Apple Inc., ExxonMobil, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, Wells Fargo & Co., Johnson & Johnson, IBM, Chevron, General Electric, Pfizer Inc., Coca-Cola Co., Google and AT&T.

The fund’s expenses are just 0.10% of its assets.

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