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MOODY’S CORP. $37 (New York symbol MCO; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 246.4 million; Market cap: $9.1 billion; WSSF Rating: Average) provides independent credit ratings and other information on bonds and other securities. The company also provides credit assessment services and software to banks and other lenders. Moody’s gets 40% of its revenue from outside the United States. Moody’s stock is down 51% from its all-time high of $76 in February 2007. The slowdown in the housing market has hurt demand for credit reports on securities backed by mortgages and other assets. These securities account for 40% of Moody’s rating business. Despite the credit market slowdown, Moody’s earnings in 2007 rose 3.1% to $677.8 million from $657.6 million in 2006. These figures exclude restructuring costs. Earnings per share rose 11.1%, to $2.50 from $2.25 on fewer shares outstanding. Revenue grew 15%, to $2.3 billion in 2007 from $2.0 billion in 2006, partly due to the fall in the U.S. dollar....

MCGRAW-HILL COMPANIES LTD. $38 (New York symbol MHP; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 320.7 million; Market cap: $12.2 billion; WSSF Rating: Average) has three main operations: financial information under the Standard & Poor’s brand (45% of sales in 2007, 75% of profit); school textbooks (40%, 22%); and the media division which includes BusinessWeek magazine and four TV stations (15%, 3%). Standard & Poor’s gets most of its income from charging fees for assigning a credit grade to bonds and other securities. Falling volumes of new bond issuances plus slowing corporate lending will likely hurt its short-term growth. However, Standard & Poor’s should gain from growing investor demand for investment-grade corporate bonds and government securities....

TOYOTA MOTOR CORP. ADRs $104 (New York symbol TM, Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; ADRs outstanding: 1.8 billion; Market cap: $187.2 billion; WSSF Rating: Above average) is the world’s second-largest car maker after General Motors. Each Toyota ADR represents two of Toyota’s common shares. The company spends about 4% of its revenue on research. This spending has helped Toyota take the lead in several new automotive technologies, including the hybrid gasoline/electric engine. Thanks to surging fuel prices, demand for hybrid vehicles is rising strongly. The company is also earning money by licensing its hybrid technology to other automakers. Toyota is now working on a hybrid car that users can recharge by plugging it into a household electrical outlet. That would give the electrical motor greater range, reducing the need to use the gasoline engine for short trips....

AUTODESK INC. $33 (Nasdaq symbol ADSK; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 230.9 million; Market cap: $7.6 billion; WSSF Rating: Average) is the largest maker of design software used in construction and engineering. It has now developed what it calls its “sustainability analysis dashboard”. This lets engineers and architects measure the environmental impact of design features. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System, developed by the U.S. Green Building council, provides a set of standards for environmentally sustainable construction. Autodesk’s dashboard software lets users measure how many points a specific design feature will give them towards LEED certification. In the fiscal year ended January 31, 2008, Auto Desk earned $1.88 a share before unusual items, up 22.9% from $1.53 in the prior year. Revenue rose 22.2%, to $2.2 billion from $1.8 billion. It spent a high 22% of its fiscal 2008 revenue on research....

THE BOEING CO. $76 (New York symbol BA; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 764.8 million; Market cap: $58.1 billion; WSSF Rating: Above average) is the world’s second-largest maker of commercial aircraft, behind Europe’s Airbus. Boeing is currently developing its new 787 Dreamliner passenger jet plane, which uses lightweight materials like titanium and carbon fiber. This makes the 787 about 20% more fuel-efficient than older models. The 787 will also use energy-efficient LED lighting inside the cabin, instead of fluorescent tubes. Thanks to its low fuel requirements, demand from cost-conscious airlines for the 787 has been strong. Since its launch in April 2004, Boeing has received nearly 900 orders for the 787, worth over $150 billion....

PHILIPS ELECTRONICS N.V. ADRs $38 (New York symbol PHG; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; ADRs outstanding: 1.1 billion; Market cap: $41.8 billion; WSSF Rating: Average) operates in three main areas: consumer electronics; lighting; and medical equipment. Each American Depository Receipt represents one Philips common share. Philips is a leading maker of LED (light-emitting diode) lighting systems, which use up to 50% less electricity than regular light bulbs. LEDs also last much longer than conventional bulbs. Consequently, many cities are replacing street lamps and traffic signals with LEDs. Construction companies are also installing LED systems in new buildings. Demand for LEDs should continue to grow, as the technology improves and manufacturing costs fall. In 2007, Philips’ earnings jumped to 4.19 Euros a share from 0.76 Euros a share in 2006, mostly due to gains on the sale of assets (1 Euro = $1.54 U.S.). Sales crept up to 26.8 billion Euros from 26.7 billion Euros....

GENERAL ELECTRIC CO. $37 (New York symbol GE; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 10.0 billion; Market cap: $370.0 billion; WSSF Rating: Above average) is one of the world’s largest industrial corporations. GE’s products include major appliances; lighting products; medical imaging equipment; power generation and delivery products; and aircraft jet engines. It also owns 80% of media company NBC Universal, which operates the NBC television network, Universal Studios and several cable and Internet properties. GE sells a wide range of environmentally friendly consumer products, including low-wattage light bulbs and energy-efficient appliances. It also supplies wind turbines and solar panels to electrical utilities. As well, its expertise with nuclear power plants should help it profit from the construction of new plants around the world. Nuclear plants generate fewer emissions than gas and coalfired plants. GE earned $2.17 a share (total $22.5 billion) in 2007, up 8.5% from $2.00 ($19.4 billion) in 2006. Revenue rose 13.8%, to $172.7 billion from $151.8 billion. Research and development spending was 2.4% of revenues. Long-term debt of $319.0 billion is a high 86% of its market cap, but won’t likely hinder GE’s ability to expand research or make acquisitions of companies with environmental technologies....

SHORE GOLD $3.80 (Toronto symbol SGF; SI Rating: Start-up) (306-664-2202; www.shoregold.com; Shares outstanding: 182.7 million; Market cap: $694.3 million) owns 100% of the Star diamond project in the Fort a la Corne area of Saskatchewan, which hosts one of the most extensive kimberlite fields in the world. Shore Gold has completed underground bulk sampling at the Star project, which returned high caratgrades of diamonds. By the end of this year, it hopes to complete a bankable feasibility study supporting a diamond mine. The company aims to complete construction of a mine by 2012. Shore Gold also holds 60% of the nearby Fort a la Corne Joint Venture. Newmont Mining holds the other 40%, as well as 9.9% of Shore Gold’s common shares....

STORNOWAY DIAMOND CORP. $0.45 (Toronto symbol SWY; SI Rating: Start-up) (1-888-338-2200; www.sornowaydiamonds.com; Shares outstanding: 198.9 million; Market cap: $89.5 million) holds interests in over 15 diamond exploration properties in Canada and one in Botswana. TSE-listed Agnico Eagle holds a 13.1% interest in the combined company. Global mining giant Rio Tinto Limited holds a 12.9% interest. Stornoway’s projects include a 50% interest in the Renard diamond project in Quebec, which has the potential to become Quebec’ s first diamond mine. Bulk sampling has produced promising carat-grade recoveries The project is now in the pre-feasibility stage to define a total resource estimate. Renard is the company’s most advanced project, but close behind is the Aviat project on the Melville Peninsula in the eastern Arctic (located across from Baffin Island). This project is a joint venture between Stornoway (70%), BHP Billiton (20%) and Hunter Exploration (10%). The partners have discovered eleven kimberlites at Aviat. Early results have shown high sample grades of diamonds....

DOMINO’S PIZZA $13.37 (New York symbol DPZ; SI Rating: Average)(734-930-3030; www.dominos.com; Shares outstanding: 59.6 million; Market cap: $796.9 million) is the world leader in pizza delivery. Through its primarily franchised system, Domino’s operates a network of 8,624 franchised and company-owned stores in the United States and in more than 55 countries. In the three months ended December 30, 2007, Domino’s revenues rose 2.5%, to $445.9 million from $435.3 million. International same-store sales rose 9.5%. That offset 1.1% lower sales at company owned U.S. locations. Despite the higher overall sales, earnings per share excluding one-time items fell 57.1%, to $0.21 from $0.49. The decline came from higher cheese, meat and wheat costs, plus increased transportation costs due to high fuel prices. As well, the company’s higher debt level, which rose to pay for a one time $13.50 a share dividend in early 2007, pushed up interest expense. Long-term debt now stands at a high $1.7 billion, or 213% of market cap....

RUBY TUESDAY, INC. $7.17 (New York symbol RT; SI Rating: Speculative) (865-379-5700; www.rubytuesday.com; Shares outstanding: 51.7 million; Market cap: $370.7 million) continues to work at upgrading its image with higher-quality food, improved service, better marketing and re-modelled restaurants. The Ruby Tuesday restaurant chain offers casual American dining. The improved menu now includes 14 different appetizers, handcrafted burgers, a 46-item salad bar, fish, ribs and steaks. Ruby Tuesday owns and operates over 680 restaurants in 20 states. Its United States franchisees operate 199 restaurants in 25 states, and international franchisees operate 54 in the Asia Pacific Region, India, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Iceland, Eastern Europe, and Central and South America....

CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL $85.65 (New York symbol CMG.B; SI Rating: Speculative) (303-595-4000; www.chipotle.com; Shares outstanding: 32.9 million; Market cap: $3.1 billion) is a Denver-based chain of Mexican restaurants. Founded in 1993, Chipotle (pronounced chi- POAT-lay) operates in the fast/casual dining segment, offering higher quality food and better decor and service than fast food chains, at slightly higher prices. In the three months ended December 31, 2007, Chipotle’s revenues rose 31.5%, to $288.9 million from $219.7 million a year earlier. Most of the revenue growth came from new restaurant openings, although comparable same store revenues were up 10.6% as well. Same-store growth resulted from an increase in customer visits. The company opened 37 restaurants in the latest quarter. It currently has over 700 restaurants....

Loblaw Companies Ltd. $28 (Toronto symbol L Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 274.2 million; Market cap: $7.7 billion; SI Rating: Above average) Loblaw is Canada’s largest grocery store operator, with over 1,000 company-owned and franchised stores. Major banners include Loblaw, No Frills, Provigo and Real Canadian Superstore. George Weston Ltd. owns 61% of Loblaw’s stock. Loblaw is currently restructuring its operations, as it de-emphasizes general merchandise and focuses on food. This includes overhauling its supply chain and computerized inventory systems to improve in-store availability and product freshness. The company also aims to make better use of its size to secure lower purchase prices from its suppliers. It will take several months before Loblaw realizes the benefits from improving productivity. Its operating margin (earnings after regular operating costs divided by revenue) will probably fall from 5.5% in 2007 to 5.0% in 2008....

METRO INC. $23 (Toronto symbol MRU.A Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 113.1 million; Market cap: $2.6 billion; SI Rating: Extra risk) operates 655 grocery stores in Quebec and Ontario. Metro is still absorbing its 2005 purchase of over 240 stores in Ontario from A&P Canada. In the first phase of its integration plan, Metro has saved $90 million by combining the purchasing power of the two chains. That’s roughly 1.5 times the $58.3 million or $0.51 a share that Metro earned in its first fiscal quarter ended December 22, 2007. Metro’s operating margin in the latest quarter fell to 5.45% from 6.15% a year earlier. That’s mainly due to costs of consolidating warehouses in Quebec and installing a new computer system in Ontario. Margins should improve as Metro realizes the benefits of the second phase of the A&P integration, which includes combining certain banners and private label brands....

TRANSCONTINENTAL INC. $15 (Toronto symbol TCL.A; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 83.7 million; Market cap: $1.3 billion; SI Rating: Average) is a leading provider of direct marketing services, such as direct mail and client database management. This business supplies 45% of its revenue. It also offers commercial printing services (30% of revenue), and publishes over 180 newspapers and 35 magazines (25% of revenue). The United States accounts for 25% of its revenue. Transcontinental continues to spend heavily upgrading its printing plants, including $80 million in two plants in Montreal. This will give customers more flexibility over colour and printing materials, as well as cut Transcontinental’s operating costs. These investments are also helping Transcontinental win more outsourcing contracts from publishers. It already has long-term deals to print The Globe and Mail and The New York Times....

THE THOMSON CORP. $36 (Toronto symbol TOC; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 638.9 million; Market cap: $23.0 billion; SI Rating: Above average) provides specialized information to users in the legal, accounting, financial, scientific and healthcare professions. Over 80% of Thomson’s revenue comes from electronic products, such as software and databases. As well, 80% comes from subscriptions, which gives its predictable revenue streams. In 2007, Thomson earned $1.1 billion before one-time items, up 28.4% from $857 million in 2007 (all amounts except share price and market cap in U.S. dollars). Per-share earnings rose 27.1%, to $1.69 from $1.33. Revenue grew 10.6%, to $7.3 billion from $6.6 billion. If you disregard acquisitions, revenue rose 6%. Thomson aims to complete its merger with UK-based Reuters Group plc in mid-April. The deal will let Thomson take advantage of Reuters operations to expand sales in Europe and Asia and cut its reliance on North America, which accounts for 83% of its revenue. The company can also market Reuters products to its own customers....

TORSTAR CORP. $17 (Toronto symbol TS.B; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 78.7 million; Market cap: $1.3 billion; SI Rating: Above average) publishes The Toronto Star, Canada’s largest daily newspaper. It also publishes other daily and community newspapers in Southern Ontario. Newspapers supply 70% of Torstar’s profit and revenue. The remaining 30% comes from wholly owned subsidiary Harlequin Enterprises Ltd., which is the world’s largest publisher of romance novels. Torstar has expanded its Internet properties in the past few years, which helps cut its exposure to declining newspaper circulation. As well, the company bought 20% of CTVglobemedia Inc. This business owns the CTV Television Network, specialty TV channels, radio stations and The Globe and Mail newspaper. These assets help broaden Torstar’s geographic exposure....

TECK COMINCO LTD. $43 (Toronto symbol TCK.B; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 441.9 million; Market cap: $19.0 billion; SI Rating: Average) is the world’s top producer of zinc, which accounts for 35% of Teck’s revenue. To cut its dependence on zinc, Teck has diversified in the past few years through acquisitions. The biggest was its $4.1 billion cash-and-stock purchase of Aur Resources in August 2007. Aur owns the Duck Pond copper mine in Newfoundland, plus two other mines in Chile. Copper now supplies 30% of Teck’s revenue. Teck’s other products include coal (20% of revenue), as well as gold, silver, lead and other metals (15%). Thanks mainly to strong demand and rising prices for metals, Teck’s revenue jumped from $2.4 billion in 2003 to $6.5 billion in 2006. Revenue slipped to $6.4 billion in 2007. Earnings rose from $0.28 a share (total $103.0 million) in 2003 to $5.26 a share ($2.2 billion) in 2006. Earnings in 2007 fell to $4.06 a share ($1.8 billion), mainly due to lower zinc and coal prices. The rising Canadian dollar also weighed on Teck’s 2007 earnings. That’s because Teck sells its products in U.S. dollars, but most of its expenses are in Canadian dollars. Cash flow per share shot up from $0.86 in 2003 to $5.76 in 2006, but fell to $4.64 in 2007....

TELUS CORP. (Toronto symbols T $57 and T.A $56; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Utilities sector; Shares outstanding: 337.9 million; Market cap: $19.3 billion; SI Rating: Above average) is the second-largest provider of telecommunication services in Canada, after BCE Inc. It has over 4.5 million regular telephone customers and 1.1 million Internet subscribers in British Columbia, Alberta and parts of Quebec. These operations account for about 55% of Telus’s revenue and 50% of its earnings. The rest comes from Telus’s wireless business, which has 5.1 million customers nationwide. Telus’s revenue grew from $7.0 billion in 2002 to $8.7 billion in 2006, or 5.6% compounded annually. The company lost $0.72 a share (total $227.1 million) in 2002, due to restructuring costs following the Clearnet acquisition. But thanks to strong demand for wireless service, Telus’s profits grew from $0.93 a share ($329.8 million) in 2003 to $3.23 a share ($1.1 billion) in 2006. Cash flow per share more than doubled, from $3.88 in 2002 to $8.78 in 2006....

TERANET INCOME FUND $9.50 (Toronto symbol TF.UN; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Units outstanding: 155.0 million; Market cap: $1.5 billion; SI Rating: Speculative) manages Ontario’s electronic land registration system. Over 80,000 customers use its proprietary, software application, Teraview, to conduct electronic real estate registrations as well as title and writ searches. Teranet has an exclusive license from the Ontario government to operate the land registry system until March 31, 2017. Teranet’s units began trading on June 16, 2006 after the fund completed an initial public offering at $10.00 a unit. The fund pays distributions of $0.065 a month. The annual rate of $0.78 yields 8.2%. Teranet distributed 70% of its cash flow to unitholders in 2007....

PRECISION DRILLING TRUST $21 (Toronto symbol PD.UN; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Units outstanding: 125.8 million; Market cap: $2.6 billion; SI Rating: Extra risk) earned $2.73 a unit in 2007, down 40.1% from $4.56 in 2006. Cash flow per share fell 35.4%, to $3.34 from $5.17, while revenue fell 28.6%, to $1.0 billion from $1.4 billion. Weaker natural gas prices and higher royalty payments in Alberta hurt demand for its drilling rigs. Precision plans to keep expanding in the United States, which now accounts for roughly 8% of its revenue. Precision’s new rigs are more efficient than regular models, and should help Precision win contracts away from U.S. operators of older rigs. The trust also plans to expand internationally in 2008. Precision pays regular monthly distributions of $0.13 a unit. That gives the units a current yield of 7.4%....

THE WESTAIM CORP. $0.26 (Toronto symbol WED; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 94.0 million; Market cap: $24.4 million; SI Rating: Speculative) owns 74.5% of Nucryst Pharmaceuticals Corp. (Toronto symbol NCS), which makes medical products that prevent infection in burns and wounds. Based on current prices, this investment is worth $0.23 per Westaim share. A new development deal with UK-based Smith & Nephew plc should expand Nucryst’s earnings in 2008 and beyond. Westaim itself is still debt free, and had cash of $0.33 a share at December 31, 2007. Westaim is still a hold, but only for highly aggressive investors.

CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY LTD. $67 (Toronto symbol CP; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 153.3 million;Market cap: $10.3 billion; SI Rating: Above average) recently acquired 40 new locomotives, but mechanical problems have hurt the reliability of its fleet. Bad weather, rising fuel costs and an unfavourable regulatory ruling could also put pressure on CP’s first quarter earnings. Despite these setbacks, CP’s earnings in 2008 should still grow about 9% to $4.72 a share. The stock trades at 14.2 times that figure. CP Rail is a buy.

Arbor Memorial Services Inc. $31 (Toronto symbol AB Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 10.7 million; Market cap: $331.7 million; SI Rating: Average) Arbor earned $5.43 million in its first fiscal quarter ended January 31, 2008, up slightly from $5.41 million a year earlier....

ISHARES CANADIAN BOND INDEX FUND $29.21 (CWA Rating: Income) (Toronto symbol XBB; buy or sell through a broker) mirrors the performance of the Scotia Capital Universe Bond Index. This index consists of a diversified range of investment grade Canadian government and corporate bonds, with a term to maturity of more than one year. At last report, the bonds in the index were 41.5% Government of Canada bonds, 26.7% Provincial government bonds, 2.1% municipal bonds and 28.8% corporate bonds....