Search

BMO EQUITY FUND $31.50 (BMO Mutual Funds, 77 King Street West, Suite 4200, Royal Trust Tower, Toronto, Ont., M5K 1J5, 1-800-665-7700; Web site: www.bmo.com. No load — deal directly with the bank) (CWA Rating: Conservative) generally invests in the shares of 20 to 40 “blue-chip” Canadian companies. These stocks are selected based on the manager’s outlook for the industry they operate in, the earnings record of each company, the strength of management, and the potential for growth. BMO Equity Fund’s 10 largest holdings are Manulife Financial, Suncor Energy, Royal Bank, TD Bank, Sun Life Financial, Petro-Canada, Canadian National Railway, CIBC, Bank of Nova Scotia and EnCana. The $2 billion BMO Equity currently holds 37.6% of its portfolio in the Financial services industry. Its next-largest holding is Energy at 23.2%....

RBC CANADIAN EQUITY FUND $25.15 (CWA Rating: Conservative)(RBC Funds, P.O. Box 7500, Station A, Toronto, Ontario. M5W 1P9. 1-800-463-3863; Web site: www.royalbank.com. No load — deal directly with the bank) invests mostly in larger-capitalization stocks, but also looks for opportunities in small and mid-cap stocks. The fund’s 10 largest holdings are TD Bank, Manulife Financial, Bank of Nova Scotia, Royal Bank, EnCana Corporation, Petro-Canada, CN Railway, Talisman Energy, Suncor Energy and Canadian Natural Resources. The $4.4 billion fund holds a relatively high 28.8% of its holdings in Financial stocks. It also holds 25.3% in Energy stocks....

TD CANADIAN EQUITY FUND $30.99 (CWA Rating: Conservative) (TD Asset Management, P.O. Box 7500, Station A, Toronto, Ontario. M5W 1P9. 1-800-463-3863; Web site: www.tdcanadatrust.ca. No load — deal directly with the bank) uses a “bottom-up” approach (using fundamentals such as earnings, cash flow and low debt) to identify undervalued companies with strong growth potential. TD Canadian Equity Fund’s 10 largest holdings are Manulife Financial, Suncor Energy, Royal Bank, TD Bank, Western Oil Sands, Canadian Oil Sands Trust, CN Railway, Inco, Falconbridge and Teck Cominco. The $2.6 billion fund currently holds about 28.6% of its portfolio in Financial services shares. It also has a bias towards Energy stocks, with 28.9% of its holdings in that sector....

T. ROWE PRICE GROUP, INC. $37 (Nasdaq symbol TROW; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; WSSF Rating: Average) sells and manages over 80 no-load mutual funds. The company also provides wealth management, brokerage and other financial services. It currently oversees assets worth roughly $293 billion. The company prefers to sell its funds directly to investors with no commission fees. That helps keep its management expense ratios down, which gives it an advantage over funds sold through brokers. T. Rowe Price earned $0.42 a share (total $116.7 million) in the three months ended March 31, 2006 (all per-share amounts adjusted for a 2-for-1 split in June 2006)....

STATE STREET CORP. $59 (New York symbol STT; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; WSSF Rating: Average) provides custodial, research, accounting and other services to large institutional investors, such as pension plans and mutual funds. The company gets about 80% of its revenue from management and other fees, while the remaining 20% comes from lending. Equity markets have slumped in the past few months and higher interest rates have cut bond prices. However, State Street’s assets under custody in the second quarter of 2006 rose 13.5%, to $10.9 trillion from $9.6 trillion a year earlier, due to new clients and more business from existing clients. Total assets under management rose 7.1%, to $1.5 trillion from $1.4 trillion a year earlier....

AMERIPRISE FINANCIAL INC. $44 (New York symbol AMP; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; WSSF Rating: Average) provides financial planning, brokerage and insurance services to over 2.7 million clients through a network of roughly 12,370 advisors. It currently owns, administers or manages assets worth $428 billion. The company was a wholly owned subsidiary of American Express Co. (see page 75) prior to September 2005. That’s when American Express handed out all of its Ameriprise shares to its own stockholders as a special tax-deferred dividend. In the three months ended June 30, 2006, the company earned $0.57 a share from continuing operations, down 6.6% from $0.61 a year earlier. If you disregard costs related to the spin-off and other unusual items, per-share income grew 21.5%, to $0.79 from $0.65. Revenue rose 13.9%, to $2.05 billion from $1.8 billion....

HARTE-HANKS, INC. $26 (New York symbol HHS; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; WSSF Rating: Average) helps companies identify and target potential customers, and works with them to develop an advertising strategy. Direct marketing provides roughly 60% of its revenue, and just over half its profit. The remaining 40% of its revenue comes from its shopper division. Shoppers are free, advertising-supported publications that the company mails to households in a particular geographic area. Harte-Hanks is the largest publisher of shoppers in the United States, with nearly 1,100 weekly editions in California and Florida that reach over 12.8 million readers. Harte-Hanks’ revenue rose from $917.9 million in 2001 to $1.14 billion in 2005, or 5.6% compounded annually. Profits grew at a compound annual rate of 13.1%, from $0.82 a share (total $79.7 million) in 2001 to $1.34 a share ($114.5 million) in 2005....

SAPUTO INC. $35 (Toronto symbol SAP; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; SI Rating: Average) is the largest dairy food processor in Canada. Its main brands include “Armstrong”, “Frigo” and “Stella”. Canada accounts for two-thirds of its revenue. Saputo also has dairy operations in the United States and Argentina. Saputo’s revenue fell from $3.5 billion in 2002 (fiscal years end March 31) to $3.4 billion in 2003, but grew steadily to $4.0 billion in 2006. Income rose from $1.54 a share (total $160.2 million) in 2002 to $2.20 a share ($232.1 million) in 2005. However, a writedown cut Saputo’s earnings in 2006 to $1.82 a share ($192.1 million). The company relies on acquisitions to fuel its growth. Although this adds to its risk, Saputo has a good history of quickly integrating new businesses and cutting their costs....

CANADA BREAD COMPANY, LTD. $61 (Toronto symbol CBY; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; SI Rating: Above average) is a leading supplier of fresh and frozen baked goods to supermarkets and restaurants. It also makes pastas and sauces. Its main brands include “Dempster’s”, “Tenderflake” and “Olivieri”. Canada Bread’s revenue rose from $678 million in 2001 to $1.35 billion in 2005, mainly due to its $262.3 million acquisition of the U.S. and UK bakery operations of Maple Leaf Foods Inc. (see below). Maple Leaf now owns 87.5% of Canada Bread. Earnings before restructuring costs jumped from $0.97 a share (total $36 million) in 2001 to $1.80 a share ($64 million) in 2002. Income fell to $1.61 a share ($63 million) in 2003, but grew to $2.62 a share ($99 million) in 2004, and to $3.07 a share ($111 million) in 2005....

MAPLE LEAF FOODS INC. $13 (Toronto symbol MFI; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; SI Rating: Average) is one of Canada’s largest food processing companies. It makes fresh and frozen meat products under the “Maple Leaf” and “Schneiders” brand names. It also supplies animal feeds and other agricultural services to farmers, and owns 87.5% of Canada Bread. The company’s revenue rose from $4.8 billion in 2001 to $5.1 billion in 2002, but slipped to $5.0 billion in 2003. In 2004, Maple Leaf paid $499 million for rival meat processing company Schneider Corp. Consequently, revenue grew to $6.4 billion in 2004, and to $6.5 billion in 2005. Income rose from $0.55 a share (total $57.4 million) in 2001 to $0.71 a share ($84.7 million) in 2002. Restructuring costs cut Maple Leaf’s profit in 2003 to $0.27 a share ($35.1 million), but income improved to $0.89 a share ($102.3 million) in 2004....

CAE INC. $8.65 (Toronto symbol CAE; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; SI Rating: Above average) is a leading maker of full-size, computerized flight simulators. Airlines use these devices to train pilots to fly certain aircraft, and to prepare flight crews to handle emergencies. CAE also makes simulators for military aircraft, including fighter jets and helicopters. In 2001, the company began operating pilot-training facilities, which nicely complements its simulator business. CAE is now the world’s second-largest provider of pilot training services, with 22 facilities on four continents. Demand for these services should grow, since it’s cheaper for airlines to send pilots to CAE’s schools than to train them in-house. CAE gets about half of its revenue from civilian airlines, and half from military organizations. That helps cut its exposure to the highly cyclical air travel industry. Revenue from continuing operations fell from $1.01 billion in 2002 (fiscal years end March 31) to $938.4 million in 2004, mostly due to the drop in air travel after 9/11. Revenue grew to $986.2 million in 2005, and to $1.11 billion in 2006....

TIMBERWEST FOREST CORP. $14.30 (Toronto symbol TWF.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) is an income trust operating in the forest products industry. It is the largest owner of private forest lands in western Canada. To raise cash, TimberWest is selling land to real-estate developers, and selling non-core assets....

GATEWAY CASINOS INCOME FUND $15.07 (Toronto symbol GCI.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) operates the Burnaby Casino and Cascades Casino in Vancouver, B.C., the Palace Casino in Edmonton, Alberta and the Lake City Casinos in Kamloops, Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon, B.C....

CANWEL BUILDING MATERIALS INCOME FUND $3.76 (Toronto symbol CWX.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) is a Canadian national wholesale distributor of hardware, building materials and home renovation products. CanWel has struggled to meet its distributions despite buoyant housing and building markets....

GENERAL DONLEE INCOME FUND $4.90 (Toronto symbol GDI.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) makes precision-machined products for the military, commercial and general aerospace industries. The fund yields 13.5%. General Donlee is looking at several “strategic options” to boost value, including a restructuring or the sale of the entire fund....

ATLAS COLD STORAGE INCOME FUND $6.26 (Toronto symbol FZR.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) provides temperature-controlled storage and logistics services to processors, distributors, food service providers and retailers across North America. Growing losses forced Atlas to halt distributions in 2003....

NORANDA INCOME FUND $11.85 (Toronto symbol NIF.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) operates the CEZ processing facility in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec. The fund currently yields 8.6%. The fund’s exposure to zinc prices and its lack of geographic diversification add to its risk....

ENERGY SAVINGS INCOME FUND $18.40 (Toronto symbol SIF.UN; SI Rating: Average) operates in Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, Quebec, British Columbia, Illinois, and New York, selling natural gas to residential, small to mid-sized commercial, and small industrial customers under long-term, irrevocable fixed-price contracts....

WESTSHORE TERMINAL INCOME FUND $10.60 (Toronto symbol WTE.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) operates a coal storage and loading terminal at Roberts Bank, B.C. The trust yields 10.2%. Coal shipped from the mines owned by the Elk Valley Coal Partnership accounts for 90% of Westshore’s revenues....

CONSUMERS’ WATERHEATER INCOME FUND $13.62 (Toronto symbol CWI.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) owns a portfolio of approximately 1.3 million installed water heaters, rented primarily to residential customers in Ontario. The units currently yield 8.7%. A lot of the fund’s growth comes from installations in newly built homes....

ROGERS SUGAR INCOME FUND $4.15 (Toronto symbol RSI.UN; SI Rating: Speculative) is the leading refiner, processor, distributor and marketer of sugar products in western Canada. The fund has a current yield of 9.7%. Rogers Sugar is vulnerable to weather conditions affecting sugar beet production and prices....

THE DUN & BRADSTREET CORP. $68 (New York symbol DNB; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; WSSF Rating: Average) provides credit reports and other information on over 100 million companies in 200 countries. These reports help lenders and purchasers make better business decisions, which cuts their risk. Dun & Bradstreet’s earnings have grown at 17% compounded yearly over the past five years, compared to 26.5% for Moody’s. Consequently, its stock trades at a lower p/e— 17.4 times its 2006 profit estimate of $3.90 a share. However, we feel Dun & Bradstreet has great long-term growth potential as world trade grows....

MOODY’S CORP. $53 (New York symbol MCO; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Finance sector; WSSF Rating: Average) provides credit ratings on bonds and other securities issued by roughly 200,000 commercial and government entities in over 100 countries. The company has about 40% of the global credit rating market. It also sells credit risk management software to financial institutions. Moody’s stock has dropped roughly 25% in the past three months. Investors fear that rising interest rates will cut interest in new debt securities, particularly those related to the home mortgage industry. It now trades at 26.0 times its forecasted 2006 earnings of $2.08 a share. The $0.28 dividend yields 0.5%. The company is currently one of five companies designated by the SEC to provide credit ratings on new securities. Issuers can speed up the registration process if they have a credit rating above a certain level....

MCGRAW-HILL COMPANIES INC. $49 (New York symbol MHP; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; WSSF Rating: Average) is a leading publisher of school textbooks. It also publishes BusinessWeek magazine and several trade journals, and owns four TV stations. However, it gets roughly two-thirds of its profits from its Standard & Poor’s subsidiary, which provides credit ratings and opinions on a variety of investments. Institutional investors rely on these ratings to select investments. The stock rose from $44 in July 2005 to $60 in March 2006, but has moved down recently on fears that weakness in global stock markets will hurt Standard & Poor’s revenue growth. Fears of lower advertising revenue at its magazine and TV business have also weighed on the stock....

DOW JONES & CO. $34 (New York symbol DJ; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; WSSF Rating: Above average) publishes The Wall Street Journal and Barron’s magazine. It also owns several smaller publications, and provides newswire and specialized information services. The company has suffered in this decade, like all publishers, from fiercer competition for ads. Its profits have stagnated in the past five years, although sales have risen from $1.56 billion in 2002 to a likely level of $1.9 billion or so this year. The stock now trades at 30.9 times its forecast 2006 profit of $1.10 a share. The $1.00 dividend yields 2.9%. Dow Jones is doing a good job of controlling its costs, which gives it more cash to expand faster- growing businesses such as Internet sites. Its latest restructuring plan should save it $15 million a year, mainly by streamlining management and outsourcing more administrative functions....